Chapter 505: TRUSTEES

In each township there shall be a board of township trustees
consisting of three members. Two of such trustees shall be elected at the
general election in nineteen forty-nine and quadrennially thereafter, in each
township, who shall hold office for a term of four years, commencing on the
first day of January next after their election. The third trustee shall be
elected at the general election in nineteen fifty-one and quadrennially
thereafter, in each township, who shall hold office for a term of four years,
commencing on the first day of January next after his election.

(A)
A member of a board of township trustees
may be appointed as a volunteer fireman and in such capacity be considered an
employee of the township, or he may be a member of a private fire company which
has entered into an agreement to furnish fire protection for the township of
which such member is a trustee; provided that such member shall not receive
compensation for his services as a volunteer fireman.

(B)
A member of a board of township trustees
may be appointed as a volunteer policeman and in that capacity may be
considered an employee of the township, except that the member shall not
receive compensation for his services as a volunteer policeman.

A member of a board of township trustees may be elected or appointed to serve
on the governing body of any district that is organized or created by the board
of township trustees, including a district organized or created under section
505.28,
505.37,
505.371,
505.375,
505.482,
505.71,
511.18, or
6119.02 of the Revised
Code.

Each township trustee, before entering upon the discharge of
his duty, shall give bond to the state for the use of the township, in the sum
of one thousand dollars, conditioned for the faithful performance of his duty
as trustee, with at least two sureties, each of whom shall be a resident of the
same township with the trustee or a corporate surety authorized to do business
in this state. Such bond shall be approved by a judge of the county court or
judge of a municipal court having jurisdiction in the township.

Whenever the judge deems it necessary, and on application of at
least twelve freeholders of the township, the judge of the county or municipal
court having jurisdiction in the township who approves the bond may require
additional security or the execution of a new bond. If a trustee fails, for ten
days, to give additional security or execute a new bond after service of the
notice in writing, the office shall be declared vacant and filled as required
by section 503.24 of the Revised Code. The
original bond or new bond shall be deposited with the township fiscal officer
and recorded by the fiscal officer.

(1)
Except as otherwise provided in division (B) of this section, the board of
township trustees may appoint a township administrator, who shall be the
administrative head of the township under the direction and supervision of the
board and who shall hold office at the pleasure of the board.

(2)
The board of township trustees shall
appoint a township administrator before the adoption of a resolution under
division (A)(1) of section
504.01 of the Revised Code
directing the board of elections to submit to the electors of the
unincorporated territory of the township the question of whether the township
should adopt a limited home rule government. The administrator shall be the
administrative head of the township under the direction and supervision of the
board and shall hold office at the pleasure of the board.

(B)
In the event that the township
administrator is absent from that office by reason of illness, death, vacation,
resignation, or removal, the chairperson of the board or a qualified person
designated by the chairperson with the approval of the board shall act as
township administrator and perform all duties of such township office, until
such time as the township administrator returns to official duties or the board
appoints a new township administrator to fill the vacancy.

(C)
The board shall fix the salary of the
township administrator and cause the same to be paid.

(E)
Prepare and submit to
the board such reports as are required by that body, or as he considers
advisable;

(F)
Keep the board
fully advised on the financial conditions of the township, preparing and
submitting a budget for the next fiscal year;

(G)
Perform such additional duties as the
board may determine by resolution.

The board of township trustees may assign to such township
administrator any office, position, or duties under its control; such office,
position, and duties to be performed under the direction and supervision of the
board and to be in addition to those set forth in this section.

The board of township trustees shall make an inventory on the
second Monday of January, each year, of all the materials, machinery, tools,
and other township supplies in its possession. The inventory shall be a public
record and shall be made in duplicate, one copy of which shall be filed with
the fiscal officer of the board and one copy with the county engineer.

Upon notifying the board of township trustees, any appointing
authority of a township office or department may establish a program to
recognize outstanding employee performance. The program may include, but is not
limited to, cash awards, additional paid leave, or other additional benefits as
the appointing authority considers appropriate, so long as the costs of the
program do not exceed the total amount of compensation fixed by the board of
township trustees for the office or department.

(1)
"Immediate family" means a spouse, who
resides in the same household, and children.

(2)
"Nonproductive land" means nonproductive
land as defined in section
5722.01 of the Revised Code that
has been acquired by a township pursuant to Chapter 5722. of the Revised Code.

(3)
"Building nuisance" means a
building satisfying all of the following:

(a)
The building is situated on a lot or parcel against which delinquent taxes,
assessments, interest, or penalties remain unpaid for more than one year after
the lot or parcel has been certified delinquent on the delinquent land list
compiled under section
5721.011 of the Revised Code, or
is situated on a lot or parcel that constitutes nonproductive land.

(b)
The building is located in the
unincorporated territory of a general health district.

(c)
The building has been declared a nuisance
by the board of health of the general health district pursuant to section
3707.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)
A board
of township trustees may select building nuisances within the unincorporated
territory of the township for the abatement of which persons may claim a credit
under this section. The board of township trustees shall maintain a list of any
such building nuisances, and each entry on the list shall identify the lot or
parcel and describe the building nuisance. The board shall certify a copy of
the list to the county auditor. Any time the board adds a building nuisance to
the list, it shall certify an updated copy of the list to the county auditor.
The list shall be open to public inspection both at the offices of the township
and the offices of the county auditor.

(C)
A person is eligible for a tax credit
under this section if that person purchases at a foreclosure sale held pursuant
to proceedings under section
323.25 or Chapter 5721. of the
Revised Code, at a sale of nonproductive lands under section
5722.07 of the Revised Code, or at
a sale of forfeited lands under Chapter 5723. of the Revised Code a lot or
parcel on the list certified to the county auditor under division (B) of this
section. However, the purchaser is not eligible for a tax credit under this
section if the purchaser is the owner of record of the lot or parcel
immediately prior to the judgment of foreclosure or forfeiture or a member of
the following class of parties connected to that owner: a member of the owner's
immediate family, a person with a power of attorney appointed by the owner who
subsequently transfers the parcel to the owner, a sole proprietorship
consisting of the owner or a member of the owner's immediate family, or a
partnership, trust, business trust, corporation, or association in which the
owner or a member of the owner's immediate family owns or controls directly or
indirectly more than fifty per cent.

After purchasing the lot or parcel, the person may demolish or
otherwise abate the building nuisance and apply to the board of township
trustees for a certificate of completion of abatement. The application shall
identify the lot or parcel on which the building nuisance was abated, and shall
state the date the lot or parcel was purchased at the foreclosure, forfeiture,
or nonproductive land sale, the date of completion of the demolition or other
abatement, and the cost of the demolition or other abatement. The cost shall be
the lowest bid from among at least three bids solicited and received by the
applicant. The applicant shall include with the application evidence of at
least three bids solicited and received by the applicant and an affidavit
stating that the purchaser of the lot or parcel at the foreclosure, forfeiture,
or nonproductive land sale was not the owner of record of the property
immediately prior to the judgment of foreclosure or forfeiture or a member of
the class of parties connected to that owner specified in this division.

Upon receipt of the application, the board of township trustees
shall cause the lot or parcel to be examined. If the board determines the
building nuisance is demolished or otherwise abated to its satisfaction, it
shall issue a certificate of completion of abatement to the owner of the lot or
parcel. The certificate shall identify the lot or parcel on which the building
nuisance was abated, and shall state the date the lot or parcel was purchased
at the foreclosure, forfeiture, or nonproductive land sale, the date of
completion of the demolition or other abatement, the cost of the demolition or
other abatement, and the percentage of that cost for which a credit shall be
granted. That percentage shall not exceed one hundred per cent of the cost of
the demolition or abatement as verified and adjusted by the board of township
trustees, except that the amount of the credit shall not exceed ten thousand
dollars. Before issuing the certificate, the board shall verify, and may
adjust, the cost of the demolition or other abatement as reported on the tax
credit application. The cost for which a credit is granted shall not exceed the
lowest of the bids submitted with the application. The board shall certify a
copy of the certificate to the county auditor.

Before issuing a certificate of completion of abatement that
will result in a tax credit in an amount that exceeds seventy-five per cent of
the real property taxes due on the lot or parcel for the tax year for which the
most recent tax duplicate certified to the county treasurer is compiled, not
including any delinquent amounts carried forward from tax years preceding the
tax year for which that duplicate is compiled, the board of township trustees
shall send written notice to the board of education of the city, local, or
exempted village school district in which the lot or parcel is located. The
notice shall state that the board of township trustees intends to grant a tax
credit against the lot or parcel, and shall include the verified and adjusted
cost of the demolition or other abatement, the percentage of that cost for
which the credit is proposed to be granted, and the amount of the proposed
credit. Within thirty days after the notice is delivered to the board of
education, the board of education shall adopt a resolution approving or
disapproving the proposed credit and shall certify a copy of the resolution to
the board of township trustees. The board of township trustees shall grant the
credit as proposed if the board of education approves the proposal or if the
board of education does not adopt a resolution approving or disapproving the
proposal within the required thirty-day period. If the board of education
adopts a resolution disapproving the proposed credit within the required
thirty-day period, the board of township trustees shall not grant the credit.

(D)
The owner of a lot or
parcel for which a certificate of completion of abatement has been issued shall
receive a tax credit equal to the percentage of the cost of the demolition or
other abatement as stated on the certificate, except that the amount of the
credit shall not exceed ten thousand dollars. The credit shall apply only to
real property taxes charged against the lot or parcel, and not to special
assessments, personal property taxes, or real property taxes charged against a
different lot or parcel.

After receiving a copy of a certificate of completion of
abatement from a board of township trustees, the county auditor shall reduce by
the amount of the credit the taxes charged against the lot or parcel the next
time the county auditor certifies such taxes to the tax list and duplicate of
real and public utility property under section
319.30 of the Revised Code. If the
amount of the credit exceeds the amount of taxes charged at that time, the
excess amount shall be carried forward to future tax years until the entire
amount of the credit is used. If the lot or parcel is sold, any carried-forward
tax credit shall run with the land. The reduction in the taxes charged against
the lot or parcel each year shall be apportioned ratably among the various
taxing authorities otherwise entitled to receive those taxes.

Notwithstanding any contrary provision in another section of
the Revised Code, section
519.12 of the Revised Code, or any
vote of the electors on a petition for zoning referendum, a township may settle
any court action by a consent decree or court-approved settlement agreement
which may include an agreement to rezone any property involved in the action as
provided in the decree or court-approved settlement agreement without following
the procedures in section
519.12 of the Revised Code and also
may include township approval of a development plan for any property involved
in the action as provided in the decree or court-approved settlement agreement,
provided that the court makes specific findings of fact that notice has been
properly made pursuant to this section and the consent decree or court-approved
settlement agreement is fair and reasonable.

If the subject of the consent decree or court-approved
settlement agreement involves a zoning issue subject to referendum under
section 519.12 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees shall publish notice of their intent to meet and
consider and take action on the decree or court-approved settlement agreement
and the date and time of the meeting in a newspaper of general circulation in
the township at least fifteen days before the meeting. The board shall permit
members of the public to express their objections to the consent decree or
court-approved settlement agreement at the meeting. Copies of the proposed
consent decree or court-approved settlement agreement shall be available to the
public at the township fiscal officer's office during normal business hours.

At least ten days prior to the submission of a proposed consent
decree or settlement agreement to the court for its review and consideration,
the plaintiff in the action involving the consent decree or settlement
agreement shall publish a notice that shall include the caption of the case,
the case number, and the court in which the consent decree or settlement
agreement will be filed, the intention of the parties in the action to file a
consent decree or settlement agreement, and, when applicable, a description of
the real property involved and the proposed change in zoning or permitted use,
in a newspaper of general circulation in the township.

After adopting by a unanimous vote a resolution declaring a
real and present emergency in connection with the administration of township
services or the execution of duties assigned by law to any officer of a
township, the board of township trustees may, by resolution, enter into a
contract, without bidding or advertising, for the purchase of services,
materials, equipment, or supplies needed to meet the emergency if the estimated
cost of the contract is less than fifty thousand dollars.

The board of township trustees, at any election or township
meeting may cause any disorderly person to be removed from such place of
election or meeting, and, if necessary, to be confined until the close of the
election or meeting. Constables shall obey the orders and directions of the
board for the purpose of preserving order at such election or meeting.

(A)
The board of township trustees may
accept, on behalf of the township, the donation by bequest, devise, deed of
gift, or otherwise, of any real or personal property for any township use. When
the township has property, including motor vehicles, road machinery, equipment,
and tools, that the board, by resolution, finds is not needed for public use,
is obsolete, or is unfit for the use for which it was acquired, the board may
sell and convey that property or otherwise dispose of it in accordance with
this section. Except as otherwise provided in sections
505.08,
505.101, and
505.102 of the Revised Code, the
sale or other disposition of unneeded, obsolete, or unfit-for-use property
shall be made in accordance with one of the following:

(1)
If the fair market value of property to
be sold is, in the opinion of the board, in excess of two thousand five hundred
dollars, the sale shall be by public auction or by sealed bid to the highest
bidder. The board shall publish notice of the time, place, and manner of the
sale once a week for two weeks in a newspaper published, or of general
circulation, in the township, and shall post a typewritten or printed notice of
the time, place, and manner of the sale in the office of the board for at least
ten days prior to the sale. The board may also cause notice to be inserted in
trade papers or other publications designated by it or to be distributed by
electronic means, including posting the notice on the board's internet web
site. If the board posts the notice on its web site, it may eliminate the
second notice otherwise required to be published in a newspaper published or of
general circulation in the township, provided that the first notice published
in such newspaper meets all of the following requirements:

(a)
It is published at least two weeks before
the sale of the property.

(b)
It
includes a statement that the notice is posted on the board's internet web
site.

(c)
It includes the internet
address of the board's internet web site.

(d)
It includes instructions describing how
the notice may be accessed on the board's internet web site.

If the board conducts the sale of the property by sealed bid,
the form of the bid shall be as prescribed by the board, and each bid shall
contain the name of the person submitting it. Bids received shall be opened and
tabulated at the time stated in the published and posted notices. The property
shall be sold to the highest bidder, except that the board may reject all bids
and hold another sale, by public auction or sealed bid, in the manner
prescribed by this section.

(2)
If the fair market value of property to
be sold is, in the opinion of the board, two thousand five hundred dollars or
less, the board may do either of the following:

(a)
Sell the property by private sale,
without advertisement or public notification;

(b)
Donate the property to an eligible
nonprofit organization that is located in this state and is exempt from federal
income taxation pursuant to 26 U.S.C. 501(a) and
(c)(3). Before donating any property under
this division, the board shall adopt a resolution expressing its intent to make
unneeded, obsolete, or unfit-for-use township property available to these
organizations. The resolution shall include guidelines and procedures the board
considers to be necessary to implement the donation program and shall indicate
whether the township will conduct the donation program or the board will
contract with a representative to conduct it. If a representative is known when
the resolution is adopted, the resolution shall provide contact information
such as the representative's name, address, and telephone number.

The resolution shall include within its procedures a
requirement that any nonprofit organization desiring to obtain donated property
under this division shall submit a written notice to the board or its
representative. The written notice shall include evidence that the organization
is a nonprofit organization that is located in this state and is exempt from
federal income taxation pursuant to
26 U.S.C.
501(a) and (c)(3) ; a
description of the organization's primary purpose; a description of the type or
types of property the organization needs; and the name, address, and telephone
number of a person designated by the organization's governing board to receive
donated property and to serve as its agent.

After adoption of the resolution, the board shall publish, in a
newspaper of general circulation in the township, notice of its intent to
donate unneeded, obsolete, or unfit-for-use township property to eligible
nonprofit organizations. The notice shall include a summary of the information
provided in the resolution and shall be published at least twice. A similar
notice also shall be posted continually in the board's office. The board may
also cause notice to be inserted in trade papers or other publications
designated by it or to be distributed by electronic means, including posting
the notice on the board's internet web site. If the board posts the notice on
its web site, it may eliminate the second notice otherwise required to be
published in a newspaper of general circulation in the township, provided that
the first notice published in such newspaper meets all of the following
requirements:

(i)
It is published at
least two weeks before the donation of the property.

(ii)
It includes a statement that the notice
is posted on the board's internet web site.

(iii)
It includes the internet address of the
board's internet web site.

(iv)
It
includes instructions describing how the notice may be accessed on the board's
internet web site.

The board or its representatives shall maintain a list of all
nonprofit organizations that notify the board or its representative of their
desire to obtain donated property under this division and that the board or its
representative determines to be eligible, in accordance with the requirements
set forth in this section and in the donation program's guidelines and
procedures, to receive donated property.

The board or its representative also shall maintain a list of
all township property the board finds to be unneeded, obsolete, or unfit for
use and to be available for donation under this division. The list shall be
posted continually in a conspicuous location in the board's office, and, if the
township maintains a web site on the internet, the list shall be posted
continually at that web site. An item of property on the list shall be donated
to the eligible nonprofit organization that first declares to the board or its
representative its desire to obtain the item unless the board previously has
established, by resolution, a list of eligible nonprofit organizations that
shall be given priority with respect to the item's donation. Priority may be
given on the basis that the purposes of a nonprofit organization have a direct
relationship to specific public purposes of programs provided or administered
by the board. A resolution giving priority to certain nonprofit organizations
with respect to the donation of an item of property shall specify the reasons
why the organizations are given that priority.

(3)
If the board finds, by
resolution, that the township has motor vehicles, road machinery, equipment, or
tools that are not needed or are unfit for public use, and the board wishes to
sell the motor vehicles, road machinery, equipment, or tools to the person or
firm from which it proposes to purchase other motor vehicles, road machinery,
equipment, or tools, the board may offer to sell the motor vehicles, road
machinery, equipment, or tools to that person or firm, and to have the selling
price credited to the person or firm against the purchase price of other motor
vehicles, road machinery, equipment, or tools.

(4)
If the board advertises for bids for the
sale of new motor vehicles, road machinery, equipment, or tools to the
township, it may include in the same advertisement a notice of the willingness
of the board to accept bids for the purchase of township-owned motor vehicles,
road machinery, equipment, or tools that are obsolete or not needed for public
use, and to have the amount of those bids subtracted from the selling price of
the new motor vehicles, road machinery, equipment, or tools, as a means of
determining the lowest responsible bidder.

(5)
When a township has title to real
property, the board of township trustees, by resolution, may authorize the
transfer and conveyance of that property to any other political subdivision of
the state upon such terms as are agreed to between the board and the
legislative authority of that political subdivision.

(6)
When a township has title to real
property and the board of township trustees wishes to sell or otherwise
transfer the property, the board, upon a unanimous vote of its members and by
resolution, may authorize the transfer and conveyance of that real property to
any person upon whatever terms are agreed to between the board and that person.

(7)
If the board of township
trustees determines that township personal property is not needed for public
use, or is obsolete or unfit for the use for which it was acquired, and that
the property has no value, the board may discard or salvage that property.

(B)
When the board has
offered property at public auction under this section and has not received an
acceptable offer, the board, by resolution, may enter into a contract, without
advertising or bidding, for the sale of that property. The resolution shall
specify a minimum acceptable price and the minimum acceptable terms for the
contract. The minimum acceptable price shall not be lower than the minimum
price established for the public auction.

(C)
Members of the board shall consult with
the Ohio ethics commission and comply with the provisions of Chapters 102. and
2921. of the Revised Code, with respect to any sale or donation under division
(A)(2) of this section to a nonprofit organization of which a township trustee,
any member of the township trustee's family, or any business associate of the
township trustee is a trustee, officer, board member, or employee.

(D)
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary
in division (A) or (B) of this section and regardless of the property's value,
the board may sell personal property, including motor vehicles, road machinery,
equipment, tools, or supplies, that is not needed for public use, is obsolete,
or is unfit for the use for which it was acquired, by internet auction. The
board shall adopt, during each calendar year, a resolution expressing its
intent to sell that property by internet auction. The resolution shall include
a description of how the auctions will be conducted and shall specify the
number of days for bidding on the property, which shall be no less than ten
days, including Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. The resolution shall
indicate whether the township will conduct the auction or the board will
contract with a representative to conduct the auction and shall establish the
general terms and conditions of sale. If a representative is known when the
resolution is adopted, the resolution shall provide contact information such as
the representative's name, address, and telephone number.

After adoption of the resolution, the board shall publish, in a
newspaper of general circulation in the township, notice of its intent to sell
unneeded, obsolete, or unfit-for-use township personal property by internet
auction. The notice shall include a summary of the information provided in the
resolution and shall be published at least twice. A similar notice also shall
be posted continually throughout the calendar year in a conspicuous place in
the board's office. The board may also cause notice to be inserted in trade
papers or other publications designated by it or to be distributed by
electronic means, including posting the notice on the board's internet web
site. If the board posts the notice on its web site, it may eliminate the
second notice otherwise required to be published in a newspaper of general
circulation in the township, provided that the first notice published in such
newspaper meets all of the following requirements:

(1)
It is published at least two weeks before
the internet auction begins.

(2)
It includes a statement that the notice is posted on the board's internet web
site.

(3)
It includes the internet
address of the board's internet web site.

(4)
It includes instructions describing how
the notice may be accessed on the board's internet web site.

When property is to be sold by internet auction, the board or
its representative may establish a minimum price that will be accepted for
specific items and may establish any other terms and conditions for the
particular sale, including requirements for pick-up or delivery, method of
payment, and sales tax. This type of information shall be provided on the
internet at the time of the auction and may be provided before that time upon
request, after the terms and conditions have been determined by the board or
its representative.

The board of township
trustees of any township may, by resolution, enter into a contract, without
advertising or bidding, for the purchase or sale of materials, equipment, or
supplies from or to any department, agency, or political subdivision of the
state, for the purchase of services with a soil and water conservation district
established under Chapter 1515. of the Revised Code, for the purchase of supplies, services,
materials, and equipment with a regional planning commission pursuant to
division (D) of section
713.23 of the Revised Code, or for the purchase of services from an educational
service center under section
3313.846 of the Revised
Code. The resolution shall:

(A)
Set forth the maximum amount to be paid as the purchase price for the
materials, equipment, supplies, or services;

(B)
Describe the type of materials, equipment, supplies, or services that are to be
purchased;

(C)
Appropriate sufficient funds to pay the purchase price for the materials,
equipment, supplies, or services, except that no such appropriation is
necessary if funds have been previously appropriated for the purpose and remain
unencumbered at the time the resolution is adopted.

Notwithstanding section
505.10 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees may sell, lease, or transfer any real property
belonging to the township and not needed for public use to a nonprofit senior
citizens' organization to be used for public purposes involving the provision
of housing, health, social services, or recreational activities for the benefit
of older persons, upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon by the
board of township trustees and the organization. The nonprofit senior citizens'
organization shall report annually to the board of township trustees on the
nature of the activities for which the property is being used and shall provide
such other information regarding the property that the board may require. Any
deed conveying real property under this section may state that if the real
property is used at any time for purposes other than those enumerated in this
section, all right, title, and interest in the property shall revert to the
township.

With respect to any contract for the purchase of equipment,
materials, supplies, insurance, services, or a public improvement into which a
township or its officers may enter, a board of township trustees by resolution,
may adopt the model system of preferences for products mined or produced in
Ohio and the United States and for Ohio-based contractors promulgated pursuant
to division (E) of section
125.11 of the Revised Code. The
resolution shall specify the class or classes of contracts to which the system
of preferences apply, and once adopted, operates to modify the awarding of such
contracts accordingly. While the system of preferences is in effect, no
township officer or employee with the responsibility for doing so shall award a
contract to which the system applies in violation of the preference system.

A board of township trustees may, by resolution and without
bidding or advertising, exchange and transfer any real property belonging to
the township if all of the following apply in regard to the real property the
township acquires in the exchange:

(A)
Its current market value is equal to or
greater than that of the real property the township gives up in the exchange
and the county auditor so certifies prior to the transfer;

Stolen or other
property recovered by members of an organized police department of a township,
a township police district, a joint police district, or the office of a
township constable shall be deposited and kept in a place designated by the
head of the department, district, or office. Each article of property shall be
entered in a book kept for that purpose, with the name of its owner, if
ascertained, the person from whom it was taken, the place where it was found
with general circumstances, the date of its receipt, and the name of the
officer receiving it.

An inventory of all
money or other property shall be given to the party from whom it was taken,
and, if it is not claimed by some person within thirty days after arrest and
seizure, it shall be delivered to the person from whom it was taken, and to no
other person, either attorney, agent, factor, or clerk, except by special order
of the head of the department, district, or office.

No officer, or other
member of an organized police department of a township, a township police
district, a joint police
district, or the office of a township constable shall neglect or refuse to
deposit property taken or found by the officer or other member in possession of
a person arrested. Any conviction for a violation of this section shall vacate
the office of the person so convicted.

If, within thirty
days, the money or property recovered under section
505.105 of the Revised Code is
claimed by any other person, it shall be retained by its custodian until after
the discharge or conviction of the person from whom it was taken and as long as
it is required as evidence in any case in court. If that claimant establishes
to the satisfaction of the court that the claimant is the rightful owner, the
money or property shall be restored to the claimant; otherwise, it shall be
returned to the accused person, personally, and not to any attorney, agent,
factor, or clerk of the accused person, except upon special order of the head
of the organized police department of the township, township police district,
joint police district, or office
of a township constable, as the case may be, after all liens and claims in
favor of the township have first been discharged and
satisfied.

Except as otherwise
provided in this section and unless the property involved is required to be
disposed of pursuant to another section of the Revised Code, property that is
unclaimed for ninety days or more shall be sold by the chief of police or other
head of the organized police department of the township, township police
district, joint police district,
or office of a township constable at public auction, after notice of the sale
has been provided by publication once a week for three successive weeks in a
newspaper of general circulation, or as provided in
section
7.16 of the
Revised Code, in the county, or counties, if appropriate, in the case of
a joint police district. The
proceeds of the sale shall be paid to the fiscal officer of the township and
credited to the township general fund, except that, in the case of a joint
police district, the proceeds of
a sale shall be paid to the treasurer of the
joint police district board and credited to the
appropriate fund
according to agreement of the
participating townships and municipal
corporations.

If authorized to do
so by a resolution adopted by the board of township trustees or, in the case of
a joint police district,
the joint police district board
, and if the property
involved is not required to be disposed of pursuant to another section of the
Revised Code, the head of the department, district, or office may contribute
property that is unclaimed for ninety days or more to one or more public
agencies, to one or more nonprofit organizations no part of the net income of
which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual and no
substantial part of the activities of which consists of carrying on propaganda
or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, or to one or more
organizations satisfying section 501(c)(3) or (c)(19) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986.

Upon the sale of any
unclaimed property as provided in section
505.108 of the Revised Code, if any
of the unclaimed property was ordered removed to a place of storage or stored,
or both, by or under the direction of the head of the organized police
department of the township, township police district, joint
police district, or office of a
township constable, any expenses or charges for the removal or storage, or
both, and costs of sale, provided they are approved by the head of the
department, district, or office, shall first be paid from the proceeds of the
sale. Notice shall be given by certified mail, thirty days before the date of
the sale, to the owner and mortgagee, or other lienholder, at their last known
addresses.

(A)
Whenever the provisions of division (B)
of this section do not apply, and when, in its opinion, the township would be
benefited, the board of township trustees may lease township real property to
any person upon terms agreed upon by the board and the lessee. Any
consideration received from the lease shall be payable, as prescribed in the
lease, to the township fiscal officer, who shall give a receipt for the amount
received and deposit it in the township general fund.

(B)
When, in its opinion, the township would
be benefited, the board of township trustees may execute and deliver contracts
or leases to mine iron ore, stone, coal, petroleum, gas, salt, and other
minerals upon lands owned by the township, to any person complying with the
terms prescribed by the board as to consideration, rights of way, and occupancy
of ground for necessary purposes. All other matters of contract shall be such
as the board considers most advantageous to the township. The contracts or
leases shall be forfeited to the township for noncompliance with any of the
terms set forth in the contracts or leases, and shall not operate as a
conveyance of the fee to any part of the realty. No contract or lease for the
drilling or operation of a petroleum or gas well shall be valid for a longer
term than forty years from the date of the contract or lease, and no contract
or lease for the mining of iron ore, stone, coal, salt, or other minerals shall
be valid for a longer term than fifteen years from that date. The consideration
for the contracts and leases shall be rental or royalty as is prescribed by the
board, and shall be payable, as prescribed in the contract or lease, at least
once a year to the township fiscal officer, who shall give a receipt for the
amount and deposit it in the township general fund.

The board of township trustees may secure, maintain, and
provide for solid waste facilities as defined in section
3734.01 of the Revised Code if in
its opinion the facilities are necessary, and for that purpose the board may
purchase, rent, lease, or otherwise acquire land suitable for those facilities.
The boards of township trustees of any two or more townships or the legislative
authorities of any two or more political subdivisions, or any combination
thereof, may through joint action unite in the joint purchase, rental,
maintenance, use, and operation of solid waste facilities and prorate the
expense on any terms that may be mutually agreed upon. The selection of any
site shall have the approval of the board of health of the health district in
which the facility will be located.

When so required by rules adopted under division (G)(2) of
section 343.01 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees, before constructing, enlarging, or modifying a
solid waste facility, shall obtain approval for the facility from the board of
county commissioners of the county or board of directors of the joint solid
waste management district, or board of trustees of a regional solid waste
management authority if such has been formed under section
343.011 of the Revised Code, having
jurisdiction for compliance with the initial or amended solid waste management
plan of the district approved under section
3734.521,
3734.55, or
3734.56 of the Revised Code.

The board of township
trustees of a township which is composed in whole or in part of islands,
accessible from the mainland only by watercraft, may purchase and operate, and
may let for hire, a scow or lighter of sufficient tonnage to carry stone and
other road building material, equipped with or without a proper crane or
loading device, and for such purpose the board may levy a tax upon all the
taxable property in the township, in such amount as it determines.

The question of levying
such tax shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the township at a
general election. The trustees shall certify such resolution to the board of
elections not later than four p.m. of the ninetieth day before the day of the election. Twenty
days' notice thereof shall be previously given by posting in at least three
public places in the township. Such notice shall state specifically the amount
to be raised and the purpose thereof. If a majority of all the votes cast at
such election upon the proposition is in favor thereof, the tax provided for is
authorized.

The board of township
trustees of a township described in section
505.13 of the Revised Code, which,
for any reason, is inaccessible from the mainland at some time of the year, may
construct, acquire, purchase, lease, and maintain a house as the residence of a
resident physician, when, in the opinion of a majority of the members of such
board, it is necessary for the maintenance of the public health and welfare.

For the maintenance,
construction, acquisition, purchase, or lease of such
a house the board may levy a tax upon all the taxable property in the township,
in such amount as it determines.

The question of levying
such a tax shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the township at a
general or special election. The trustees shall certify such resolution to the
board of elections not later than four p.m. of the ninetieth day before the day of the election. Twenty
days' notice thereof shall be previously given by posting in at least three
public places in the township. Such notice shall state specifically the amount
to be raised and the purpose thereof. If a majority of all votes cast at such
election upon the proposition is in favor thereof, the tax provided for is
authorized.

Upon the authorization of
such tax levy the board may issue notes in anticipation of such revenues, to
mature in not more than two years from the date of issue, and to bear interest
at not more than four per cent per annum.

(A)
As used in this
section, "airport," "landing field," and "air navigation facility" have the
same meanings as in section
4561.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)
The board of township trustees
of a township which is composed in whole or in part of islands may acquire by
purchase, gift, devise, bequest, lease, condemnation proceedings, or otherwise,
real or personal property to establish, construct, enlarge, improve, equip,
maintain, and operate airports, landing fields, or other air navigation
facilities, and may acquire by purchase, gift, devise, lease, or condemnation
proceedings rights-of-way for connections with highways and waterways. The
township may provide for the making of necessary surveys, appraisals, and
examinations preliminary to the acquisition or construction of any airport,
landing field, or air navigation facility, and may improve and equip the
facilities with necessary and appropriate structures.

(C)
For the purpose of acquiring,
establishing, constructing, improving, equipping, maintaining, or operating, or
any combination of the foregoing, an airport, landing field, or other air
navigation facility, the board of township trustees may levy a tax upon all
taxable property in the township in the manner provided by section
5705.19 of the Revised Code.

The board of township trustees may, in a township containing a
harbor or port which is outside a municipal corporation, and in which vessels
are accustomed to lie for the purpose of receiving or discharging freights, if
it believes the public interest so demands, appoint a suitable person to act as
harbor master. The powers and duties of such person shall be prescribed by the
board, and shall be such as are prescribed for harbor masters in municipal
corporations in so far as they are applicable.

Such harbor master shall hold his office for one year or until
his appointment is annulled by the board. He shall receive such compensation,
not to exceed one hundred fifty dollars each year, as the board designates,
which sum shall be paid from the township treasury on the order of the board.

(A)
Except in a township or portion of a township that is within the limits of a
municipal corporation, the board of township trustees may make regulations and
orders as are necessary to control passenger car, motorcycle, and internal
combustion engine noise, as permitted under section
4513.221 of the Revised Code, and
all vehicle parking in the township. This authorization includes, among other
powers, the power to regulate parking on established roadways proximate to
buildings on private property as necessary to provide access to the property by
public safety vehicles and equipment, if the property is used for commercial
purposes, the public is permitted to use the parking area, and accommodation
for more than ten motor vehicles is provided, and the power to authorize the
issuance of orders limiting or prohibiting parking on any township street or
highway during a snow emergency declared pursuant to a snow-emergency
authorization adopted under this division. All such regulations and orders
shall be subject to the limitations, restrictions, and exceptions in sections
4511.01 to
4511.76 and
4513.02 to
4513.37 of the Revised Code.

A board of township
trustees may adopt a general snow-emergency authorization, which becomes
effective under division (B)(1) of this section, allowing the president of the
board or some other person specified in the authorization to issue an order
declaring a snow emergency and limiting or prohibiting parking on any township
street or highway during the snow emergency. Any such order becomes effective
under division (B)(2) of this section. Each general snow-emergency
authorization adopted under this division shall specify the weather conditions
under which a snow emergency may be declared in that township.

(1)
All regulations and orders, including any
snow-emergency authorization established by the board under this section,
except for an order declaring a snow emergency as provided in division (B)(2)
of this section, shall be posted by the township fiscal officer in five
conspicuous public places in the township for thirty days before becoming
effective, and shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the
township for three consecutive weeks or as provided in
section
7.16 of the
Revised Code. In addition to these requirements, no general
snow-emergency authorization shall become effective until permanent signs
giving notice that parking is limited or prohibited during a snow emergency are
properly posted, in accordance with any applicable standards adopted by the
department of transportation, along streets or highways specified in the
authorization.

(2)
Pursuant
to the adoption of a snow-emergency authorization under this section, an order
declaring a snow emergency becomes effective two hours after the president of
the board or the other person specified in the general snow-emergency
authorization makes an announcement of a snow emergency to the local news
media. The president or other specified person shall request the local news
media to announce that a snow emergency has been declared, the time the
declaration will go into effect, and whether the snow emergency will remain in
effect for a specified period of time or indefinitely until canceled by a
subsequent announcement to the local news media by the president or other
specified person.

(C)
Such regulations and orders may be enforced where traffic control devices
conforming to section
4511.09 of the Revised Code are
prominently displayed. Parking regulations authorized by this section do not
apply to any state highway unless the parking regulations are approved by the
director of transportation.

(D)
A board of township trustees or its designated agent may order into storage any
vehicle parked in violation of a township parking regulation or order, if the
violation is not one that is required to be handled pursuant to Chapter 4521.
of the Revised Code. The owner or any lienholder of a vehicle ordered into
storage may claim the vehicle upon presentation of proof of ownership, which
may be evidenced by a certificate of title to the vehicle, and payment of all
expenses, charges, and fines incurred as a result of the parking violation and
removal and storage of the vehicle.

(E)
Whoever violates any regulation or order adopted pursuant to this section is
guilty of a minor misdemeanor, unless the township has enacted a regulation
pursuant to division (A) of section
4521.02 of the Revised Code, that
specifies that the violation shall not be considered a criminal offense and
shall be handled pursuant to Chapter 4521. of the Revised Code. Fines levied
and collected under this section shall be paid into the township general
revenue fund.

(A)
Except in a township or portion thereof
that is within the limits of a municipal corporation, the board of township
trustees may adopt regulations necessary to require an owner or operator of a
drive-in theater located in the township, to erect the theater screen in such a
manner and location that the images projected on the screen are not clearly
visible to persons driving on any road, street, or highway located within a
radius of one-third mile from the theater screen.

(B)
Except in a township or portion thereof
that is within the limits of a municipal corporation, the board of township
trustees may adopt regulations necessary to require an owner or operator of a
drive-in theater located in the township to construct and maintain a fence,
wall, or tangible or intangible barrier which shall, to the maximum extent
practicable in view of the topography of the site and location of the screen,
conceal or obscure x-rated or obscene images projected on the screen from the
ordinary view of persons driving on any road, street, or highway located within
a radius of one-third mile from the theater screen.

(C)
The township constable or police district
chief shall inspect each drive-in theater located in the township, but not
within the limits of a municipal corporation; furnish the owner or operator
thereof with a copy of the regulations adopted pursuant to divisions (A) and
(B) of this section; and notify in writing the owner or operator if he finds
there is a violation of the regulations.

(D)
Whoever violates any regulation adopted
pursuant to division (A) or (B) of this section is guilty of a minor
misdemeanor.

(B)
Except as otherwise provided in this section and section
505.17 of the Revised Code, a board
of township trustees may adopt regulations and orders that are necessary to
control noise within the unincorporated territory of the township that is
generated at any premises to which a D permit has been issued by the division
of liquor control or that is generated within any areas zoned for residential
use.

(C)
Any
person who engages in any of the activities described in section
1.61 of the
Revised Code is exempt from any regulation or order adopted under division (B)
of this section if the noise is attributed to an activity described in section
1.61 of the
Revised Code. Any person who engages in coal mining and reclamation operations,
as defined in division (B) of section
1513.01 of the Revised Code, or
surface mining, as defined in division (A) of section
1514.01 of the Revised Code, is
exempt from any regulation or order adopted under division (B) of this section
if the noise is attributed to coal mining and reclamation or surface mining
activities. Noise resulting from the drilling, completion, operation,
maintenance, or construction of any crude oil or natural gas wells or pipelines
or any appurtenances to those wells or pipelines or from the distribution,
transportation, gathering, or storage of crude oil or natural gas is exempt
from any regulation or order adopted under division (B) of this
section.

(1)
Except as otherwise provided in division
(C) of this section, any
regulation or order adopted under division (B) of this section shall apply to
any business or industry

or to any premises
to which a D permit has been issued by the division of liquor control
regardless of when it came into existence .

(E)
Whoever
violates any regulation or order adopted under division (B) of this section is
guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree. Fines levied and collected under
this section shall be paid into the township general revenue fund.

(F)
Any person allegedly aggrieved by another person's violation of a regulation or
order adopted under division (B) of this section may seek in a civil action a
declaratory judgment, an injunction, or other appropriate relief against the
other person committing the act or practice that violates that regulation or
order. A board of township trustees that adopts a regulation or order under
division (B) of this section may seek in a civil action an injunction against
any
person that commits an act or practice that violates that regulation or order.
The court involved in a civil action referred to in this division may award to
the prevailing party reasonable attorney's fees limited to the work reasonably
performed.

(G)
If any
law enforcement officer with jurisdiction in a township that has adopted a
regulation or order under division (B) of this section has reasonable cause to
believe that any premises to which a D permit has been issued by the division
of liquor control has violated the regulation or order and, as a result of the
violation, has caused, is causing, or is about to cause substantial and
material harm, the law enforcement officer may issue an order that the premises
cease and desist from the activity violating the regulation or order. The
cease-and-desist order shall be served personally upon the owner, operator,
manager, or other person in charge of the premises immediately after its
issuance by the officer. The township thereafter may publicize or otherwise
make known to all interested persons that the cease-and-desist order has been
issued.

The cease-and-desist
order shall specify the particular conduct that is subject to the order and
shall inform the person upon whom it is served that the premises will be
granted a hearing in the municipal court or county court with jurisdiction over
the premises regarding the operation of the order and the possible issuance of
an injunction or other appropriate relief. The premises shall comply with the
cease-and-desist order immediately upon receipt of the order. Upon service of
the cease-and-desist order upon the owner, operator, manager, or other person
in charge of the premises, the township law director or, if the township does
not have a law director, the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the
township is located shall file in the municipal court or county court with
jurisdiction over the premises a civil action seeking to confirm the
cease-and-desist order and seeking an injunction or other appropriate relief
against the premises. The owner, operator, manager, or other person in charge
of the premises may file a motion in that civil action for a stay of the
cease-and-desist order for good cause shown, pending the court's rendering its
decision in the action. The court shall set a date for a hearing, hold the
hearing, and render a decision in the action not more than ten days after the
date of the cease-and-desist order, or the cease-and-desist order is
terminated. Division (F) of this section applies regarding an action filed as
described in this division.

(H)
Nothing in this section authorizes a township to enforce any regulation or
order adopted under division (B) of this section against a premises to which a
D permit has been issued by the division of liquor control if that premises is
not located in the unincorporated territory of that township.

(A)
Notwithstanding sections
4513.60 to
4513.65 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees may adopt resolutions as the board considers
necessary to regulate the storage of junk motor vehicles on private or public
property within the unincorporated area of the township. No resolution shall
restrict the operation of a scrap metal processing facility licensed under
authority of sections
4737.05 to
4737.12 of the Revised Code; the
operation as a motor vehicle salvage dealer, salvage motor vehicle auction, or
salvage motor vehicle pool of a person licensed under Chapter 4738. of the
Revised Code; or the provision of towing and recovery services conducted under
sections 4513.60 to
4513.63 of the Revised Code,
including the storage and disposal of junk motor vehicles removed from public
or private property in accordance with those sections. Except for a case in
which division (C) of this section applies, no resolution shall prevent a
person from storing or keeping, or restrict a person in the method of storing
or keeping, any collector's vehicle on private property with the permission of
the person having the right to the possession of the property, except that a
person having such permission may be required to conceal, by means of
buildings, fences, vegetation, terrain, or other suitable screening, any
unlicensed collector's vehicle stored in the open.

(B)
In addition to other remedies provided by
law, the board of township trustees may institute an action for injunction,
mandamus, or abatement, or any other appropriate action or proceeding to
prohibit the storage of junk motor vehicles in violation of this section.

(C)
Regardless of whether it is
licensed or unlicensed, a collector's vehicle is a "junk motor vehicle" for
purposes of this section if the collector's vehicle meets all of the criteria
contained in division (E) of this section. If a collector's vehicle meets all
of the criteria contained in division (E) of this section, a board of township
trustees, in accordance with division (A) of this section, may regulate the
storage of that motor vehicle on private or public property in the same manner
that the board may regulate the storage of any other junk motor vehicle and, in
case of a violation of this section, may pursue any remedy provided by law,
including any remedy provided in division (B) of this section.

(D)
Whoever violates any resolution adopted
under this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. Each day that a violation
of this section continues constitutes a separate offense. Fines levied and
collected under this section shall be paid into the township general revenue
fund.

(E)
As used in this section,
"junk motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle that meets all of the following
criteria:

When a township has been divided into two or more parts,
subsequent to the original issue of bonds in aid of or for purposes of public
improvement, the authorities of the parts so constituted, jointly, may issue
new bonds for the amount of such original issue becoming due.

Within thirty days after the first Monday in April in each
year, the trustees of a township constituted out of the division of a township,
shall meet together and jointly assess and levy on the taxable property, real
and personal, within the limits of the original township, the taxes necessary
to pay the interest on bonds issued under section
505.18 of the Revised Code, and to
pay such sum as seems expedient to them for the redemption of the principal
named in such bonds.

In addition to the tax already authorized by law, the board of
township trustees may levy a tax, not to exceed five mills on the dollar for
the purpose of drilling an oil or gas well in the township, when so authorized
by a majority vote of the electors of such township at a regular or special
election. Such election shall be conducted the same as elections for township
officers, and the tax shall be collected as other taxes.

The board of township trustees may purchase for its use one
copy of the Revised Code, and such other standard works containing all the
sections of the Revised Code applicable to township officers, with forms and
citations for the guidance of such officers, as are necessary, to be paid for
from unappropriated funds in the township treasury when there are sufficient
unappropriated funds in the treasury.

Any political subdivision which maintains and operates a
volunteer fire department may provide for insurance against liability, and
accident and death benefits, for the members of such fire department by the
purchase of standard liability and casualty insurance, insuring such members
while acting in the line of duty.

When two or more political subdivisions jointly own, control,
or manage a volunteer fire department, this section shall apply, at the
discretion of the legislative authority of such subdivisions.

(A)
Except as otherwise provided in division (B) of this section, an amount for
each day of service in the business of the township, to be paid from the
township treasury as follows:

(1)
In
townships having a budget of fifty thousand dollars or less, twenty dollars per
day for not more than two hundred days;

(2)
In townships having a budget of more than fifty thousand but not more than one
hundred thousand dollars, twenty-four dollars per day for not more than two
hundred days;

(3)
In
townships having a budget of more than one hundred thousand but not more than
two hundred fifty thousand dollars, twenty-eight dollars and fifty cents per
day for not more than two hundred days;

(4)
In townships having a budget of more than two hundred fifty thousand but not
more than five hundred thousand dollars, thirty-three dollars per day for not
more than two hundred days;

(5)
In townships having a budget of more than five hundred thousand but not more
than seven hundred fifty thousand dollars, thirty-five dollars per day for not
more than two hundred days;

(6)
In townships having a budget of more than seven hundred fifty thousand but not
more than one million five hundred thousand dollars, forty dollars per day for
not more than two hundred days;

(7)
In townships having a budget of more than one million five hundred thousand but
not more than three million five hundred thousand dollars, forty-four dollars
per day for not more than two hundred days;

(8)
In townships having a budget of more than three million five hundred thousand
dollars but not more than six million dollars, forty-eight dollars per day for
not more than two hundred days;

(9)
In townships having a budget of more than six million dollars, fifty-two
dollars per day for not more than two hundred days.

(B)
Beginning in calendar year 1999, the amounts paid as specified in division (A)
of this section shall be replaced by the following amounts:

(1)
In calendar year 1999, the amounts specified in division (A) of this section
increased by three per cent;

(2)
In calendar year 2000, the amounts determined under division (B)(1) of this
section increased by three per cent;

(3)
In calendar year 2001, the amounts determined under division (B)(2) of this
section increased by three per cent;

(4)
In calendar year 2002, except in townships having a budget of more than six
million dollars, the amounts determined under division (B)(3) of this section
increased by three per cent; in townships having a budget of more than six
million but not more than ten million dollars, seventy dollars per day for not
more than two hundred days; and in townships having a budget of more than ten
million dollars, ninety dollars per day for not more than two hundred
days;

(5)
In
calendar years 2003 through 2008, the amounts determined under division (B) of
this section for the immediately preceding calendar year increased by the
lesser of the following:

(b)
The
percentage increase, if any, in the consumer price index over the twelve-month
period that ends on the thirtieth day of September of the immediately preceding
calendar year, rounded to the nearest one-tenth of one per cent;

(6)
In
calendar year 2009 and thereafter, the amount determined under division (B) of
this section for calendar year 2008.

As used in division
(B) of this section, "consumer price index" has the same meaning as in section
325.18 of the Revised Code.

(C)
Whenever
members of a board of township trustees are compensated per diem and not by
annual salary, the board shall establish, by resolution, a method by which each
member of the board shall periodically notify the township fiscal officer of
the number of days spent in the service of the township and the kinds of
services rendered on those days. The per diem compensation shall be paid from
the township general fund or from other township funds in such proportions as
the kinds of services performed may require. The notice shall be filed with the
township fiscal officer and preserved for inspection by any persons interested.

By unanimous vote, a
board of township trustees may adopt a method of compensation consisting of an
annual salary to be paid in equal monthly payments. If the office of trustee is
held by more than one person during any calendar year, each person holding the
office shall receive payments for only those months, and any fractions of those
months, during which the person holds the office. The amount of the annual
salary approved by the board shall be no more than the maximum amount that
could be received annually by a trustee if the trustee were paid on a per diem
basis as specified in this division, and shall be paid from the township
general fund or from other township funds in such proportions as the board may
specify by resolution. Each trustee shall certify the
percentage of time spent working on matters to be paid from the township
general fund and from other township funds in such proportions as the kinds of
services performed. A board of township trustees that has adopted a
salary method of compensation may return to a method of compensation on a per
diem basis as specified in this division by a majority vote. Any change in the
method of compensation shall be effective on the first day of January of the
year following the year during which the board has voted to change the method
of compensation.

A board of township trustees may authorize its elected officers
to join an association or nonprofit organization formed for the improvement of
township government. Such board may appropriate from its general fund an amount
sufficient to pay the dues, subscription costs, or membership charges of such
association or nonprofit organization.

The board of township trustees of a township such as that
described in section
505.13 of the Revised Code, which,
for any reason, is inaccessible from the mainland at some time of the year,
shall be entitled to additional compensation, not to exceed ten dollars for
each trip, for reasonable expenses incurred in attending necessary meetings of
the board and meetings with the county officials on the mainland.

The board of township trustees may purchase, appropriate,
construct, enlarge, improve, rebuild, repair, furnish, and equip a township
hall, a township park, public library buildings, and bridges and viaducts over
streets, streams, railroads, or other places where an overhead roadway or
footway is necessary, and such board may acquire sites by lease or otherwise
for any of such improvements, including lands and buildings for recreational
purposes.

The board of township trustees, not for purposes of recreation,
but for the purposes of protecting and preserving the natural, scenic, open, or
wooded condition of land, water, or wetlands against modification or
encroachment resulting from occupation, development, or other use, may acquire,
other than by appropriation, an ownership interest in land, water, or wetlands,
and may restore and maintain land, water, or wetlands in which it has such an
interest.

If sufficient space for township offices is not available, the
board of township trustees may purchase, lease, or construct, and furnish,
equip, and maintain office space. When such offices are to be provided by
construction, a site upon which to erect such offices may be acquired by
purchase, lease for twenty-five years or longer, or otherwise. The cost of
providing such office space shall be paid out of funds in the township
treasury. If sufficient funds are not available the board shall proceed as
provided in sections
511.01 to
511.04 of the Revised Code.

A board of township trustees may acquire suitable lands and
materials, including landscape planting and other site improvement materials
and playground, athletic, and recreational equipment and apparatus, to
establish a township park pursuant to section
505.26 of the Revised Code and for
those purposes may issue, subject to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code,
securities and other public obligations as defined in division (GG) of section
133.01 of the Revised Code.

If lands are purchased, the board may pay for them over a
period of thirty years from the date of purchase, and may issue securities of
the township covering the deferred payments pursuant to division (B)(4)(c) of
section 133.20 of the Revised Code. If
materials, including landscape planting or other site improvement materials and
playground, athletic, and recreational equipment and apparatus, are purchased,
the board may issue securities of the township for that purpose having a
maximum maturity as specified in division (B)(7)(e) or (f) of section
133.20 of the Revised Code covering
the deferred payments. The securities may bear interest not to exceed the rate
determined as provided in section
9.95 of the
Revised Code. The securities shall not be included in the computation of the
net indebtedness of the township under section
133.09 of the Revised Code.

The resolution authorizing the issuance of the securities shall
provide for amounts sufficient to pay the interest on and principal of the
securities. For this purpose, the board may expend funds from the township
general fund, or the board may levy a tax, not to exceed one-half of one mill,
on the taxable property of the township for a period not to exceed four years.
The tax shall be collected as other taxes and appropriated to pay the interest
on and principal of the securities. The securities shall contain an option for
prepayment. The securities shall be offered for sale on the open market or may
be given to the vendor or contractor if no sale is made on the open market.

The board shall have surveys and plats made of the lands
acquired for a township park and shall establish permanent monuments on the
boundaries of the lands. The plats, when executed according to sections
711.01 to
711.38 of the Revised Code, shall
be recorded in the office of the county recorder, and such records shall be
admissible in evidence for the purpose of locating and ascertaining the true
boundaries of the park. In furtherance of the use and enjoyment of the park
lands controlled by it, the board may accept donations of money or other
property, or may act as trustees of land, money, or other property, and use and
administer them as stipulated by the donor, or as provided in the trust
agreement. The terms of each donation or trust shall first be approved by the
court of common pleas before acceptance by the board.

The board may receive and expend grants for park purposes from
agencies and instrumentalities of the United States or of this state, and may
enter into contracts or agreements with the agencies and instrumentalities, or
with other townships, township park boards, municipal corporations, municipal
park boards, counties, park districts, or other similar park authorities, to
carry out the purposes for which the grants were furnished.

The board shall devise plans for the maintenance and
improvement of the park and award all contracts for maintenance and improvement
in the manner provided by the law governing township trustees in awarding
contracts for public improvements. The board may appoint all necessary
employees, fix their compensation, and prescribe their duties. The board may
prohibit selling, giving away, or using any intoxicating liquors in the
township park, and may pass bylaws and adopt rules for the government of the
park and provide for their enforcement by fines and penalties.

(A)
Notwithstanding division (D) of section
505.37 of the Revised Code or any
other statute of this state, the board of township trustees of any township, by
unanimous vote, may adopt a resolution allowing the township to contract for
the purchase of equipment, buildings, and sites, or for the construction of
buildings, for any lawful township purpose. The board may issue, by resolution
adopted by unanimous vote, securities of the township to finance purchases and
construction made pursuant to this division. The securities shall be signed by
the board and attested by the signature of the township fiscal officer, and the
maximum maturity of those securities is subject to the limitations in section
133.20 of the Revised Code. The
securities shall bear interest not to exceed the rate determined as provided in
section
9.95 of the
Revised Code and shall not be subject to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code. The
resolution authorizing the issuance of the securities shall provide for levying
and collecting annually by taxation, amounts sufficient to pay the interest on
and principal of the securities. The securities may contain a clause permitting
prepayment at the option of the board. Securities shall be offered for sale on
the open market or given to the vendor or contractor if no sale is made.

(B)
No purchase or construction
pursuant to division (A) of this section shall be undertaken unless the county
auditor certifies that, if the purchase or construction is undertaken, the debt
service charge for the purchase or construction in the first year, together
with the debt service charge for that same year for any other purchase or
construction already undertaken pursuant to division (A) of this section, does
not exceed one-tenth of the township's total revenue from all sources. If the
county auditor so certifies, in every year of the debt after the first year,
the county budget commission shall include a debt charge in the township's
annual tax budget submitted pursuant to sections
5705.01 to
5705.47 of the Revised Code
sufficient to meet the annual debt incurred pursuant to division (A) of this
section, if the debt charge is omitted from the budget.

The board of township trustees may enter into a contract with
the board of county commissioners under which the trustees agree to pay all or
any part of the cost of constructing, maintaining, repairing, or operating any
water supply improvement established within the limits of the township pursuant
to Chapter 6103. of the Revised Code. The contract shall be upon mutually
agreed terms. For the purpose of meeting contractual obligations incurred
pursuant to this section, the board of township trustees may levy taxes,
subject to Chapter 5705. of the Revised Code, and issue bonds and other
evidences of indebtedness, subject to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code.

(A)
As used
in this section, "energy conservation measure" means an installation or
modification of an installation in, or remodeling of, an existing building, to
reduce energy consumption. It includes the following:

(1)
Insulation of the building structure and of systems within the
building;

(2)
Storm
windows and doors, multiglazed windows and doors, heat-absorbing or
heat-reflective glazed and coated window and door systems, additional glazing,
reductions in glass area, and other window and door system modifications that
reduce energy consumption;

(6)
Replacement or modification of lighting fixtures to increase the energy
efficiency of the system without increasing the overall illumination of a
facility, unless an increase in illumination is necessary to conform to the
applicable state or local building code for the proposed lighting
system;

(8)
Cogeneration systems that produce steam or forms of energy such as heat, as
well as electricity, for use primarily within a building or complex of
buildings;

(9)
Any
other modification, installation, or remodeling approved by the board of
township trustees as an energy conservation measure.

(B)
For the purpose of evaluating township buildings for energy conservation
measures, a township may contract with an architect, professional engineer,
energy services company, contractor, or other person experienced in the design
and implementation of energy conservation measures for a report that analyzes
the buildings' energy needs and presents recommendations for building
installations, modifications of existing installations, or building remodeling
that would significantly reduce energy consumption in the buildings owned by
that township. The report shall include estimates of all costs of the
installations, modifications, or remodeling, including costs of design,
engineering, installation, maintenance, and repairs, and estimates of the
amounts by which energy consumption could be reduced.

(C)
A township desiring to implement energy conservation measures may proceed under
either of the following methods:

(1)
Using a report or any part of a report prepared under division (B) of this
section, advertise for bids and comply with the bidding procedures set forth in
sections 307.86 to
307.92 of the Revised
Code;

(2)
Request
proposals from at least three vendors for the implementation of energy
conservation measures. Prior to sending any installer of energy conservation
measures a copy of any such request, the township shall advertise its intent to
request proposals for the installation of energy conservation measures in a
newspaper of general circulation in the township once a week for two
consecutive weeks or as provided in section
7.16 of the
Revised Code. The notice shall state that the township intends to request
proposals for the installation of energy conservation measures; indicate the
date, which shall be at least ten days after the second publication, on which
the request for proposals will be mailed to installers of energy conservation
measures; and state that any installer of energy conservation measures
interested in receiving the request for proposal shall submit written notice to
the township not later than noon of the day on which the request for proposal
will be mailed.

Upon receiving the
proposals, the township shall analyze them and
select the proposal or proposals most likely to result in the greatest energy
savings considering the cost of the project and the township's ability to pay
for the improvements with current revenues or by financing the improvements.
The awarding of a contract to install energy conservation measures under
division (C)(2) of this section shall be conditioned upon a finding by the
township that the amount of money spent on energy savings measures is not
likely to exceed the amount of money the township would save in energy and
operating costs over ten years or a lesser period as determined by the township
or, in the case of contracts for cogeneration systems, over five years or a
lesser period as determined by the township. Nothing in this section prohibits
a township from rejecting all proposals or from selecting more than one
proposal.

(D)
A board of township trustees may enter into an installment payment contract for
the purchase and installation of energy conservation measures. Any provisions
of those installment payment contracts that deal with interest charges and
financing terms shall not be subject to the competitive bidding procedures of
section 307.86 of the Revised Code. Unless
otherwise approved by a resolution of the board, an installment payment
contract entered into by a board of township trustees under this section shall
require the board to contract in accordance with the procedures set forth in
section 307.86 of the Revised Code for the
installation, modification, or remodeling of energy conservation measures
pursuant to this section.

(E)
The board may issue securities of the township specifying the terms of the
purchase and securing the deferred payments, payable at the times provided and
bearing interest at a rate not exceeding the rate determined as provided in
section
9.95 of the
Revised Code. The maximum maturity of the securities shall be as provided in
division (B)(7)(g) of section
133.20 of the Revised Code. The
securities may contain an option for prepayment and shall not be subject to
Chapter 133. of the Revised Code. Revenues derived from local taxes or
otherwise, for the purpose of conserving energy or for defraying the current
operating expenses of the township, may be applied to the payment of interest
and the retirement of the securities. The securities may be sold at private
sale or given to the contractor under the installment payment contract
authorized by division (D) of this section.

(F)
Debt incurred under this section shall not be included in the calculation of
the net indebtedness of a township under section
133.09 of the Revised
Code.

(A)
A township may enter into an agreement
with the board of trustees of the police and firemen's disability and pension
fund in accordance with section
742.30 of the Revised Code. The
board of township trustees may issue securities under Chapter 133. of the
Revised Code, including Chapter 133. special obligation securities that pledge
taxes, other than ad valorem property taxes, or other revenues for the purpose
of providing some or all of the funds required to satisfy the township's
obligation under the agreement.

(B)
A township may enter into an agreement
with one or more other townships or municipal corporations to issue on behalf
of those townships or municipal corporations the securities described in
division (A) of this section. The agreement may authorize the township issuing
the securities to appoint one or more fiscal agents to perform any functions
necessary to carry out an agreement entered into under this division.

(1)
"Concentrated
animal feeding facility" and "major concentrated animal feeding facility" have
the same meanings as in section
903.01 of the Revised
Code.

(2)
"Facility"
means a proposed new or expanded major concentrated animal feeding
facility.

(3)
"Improvement"
means the construction, modification, or both of township
infrastructure.

(B)
A
person who proposes to do any of the following shall provide written
notification as required under division (C) of this section to the board of
township trustees of the township in which a facility is or is to be located:

(2)
Increase the design capacity of an existing major concentrated animal feeding
facility by ten per cent or more in excess of the design capacity set forth in
the current permit for construction or modification of the facility or for
installation or modification of the disposal system for manure at the facility
issued under section
903.02 or division (J) of section
6111.03 of the Revised Code, as
applicable;

(3)
Increase the
design capacity of an existing concentrated animal feeding facility by ten per
cent or more in excess of the design capacity set forth in the current permit
for construction or modification of the facility or for installation or
modification of the disposal system for manure at the facility issued under
section 903.02 or division (J) of section
6111.03 of the Revised Code, as
applicable, and to a design capacity of more than ten times the number of
animals specified in any of the categories in division (M) of section
903.01 of the Revised
Code.

(C)
The person
shall notify the board in writing by certified mail of the proposed
construction or expansion of the facility and include the following
information:

(1)
The
anticipated travel routes of motor vehicles to and from the facility;

(2)
The
anticipated number and weights of motor vehicles traveling to and from the
facility.

(D)
At the
request of the board, the county engineer may review the written notification
and advise the board on both of the following:

(1)
Improvements and maintenance of improvements that are reasonably needed in
order to accommodate the impact on township infrastructure that is anticipated
as a result of the facility, including increased travel or the types of
vehicles on township roads;

Not later than ten days
after receiving the written notification, the board may request the person to
provide additional reasonable and relevant information regarding the impact of
the facility on township infrastructure. The person shall provide the
information not later than ten days after the request is made.

(1)
Not later than thirty days after the
initial written notification is received by the board, the board shall submit
to the person its recommendations, if any, concerning the improvements that
will be needed as a result of the facility and the cost of those
improvements.

(2)
Not later
than fifteen days after receipt of the board's recommendations, the person
shall notify the board either that the person agrees with the recommendations
and will implement them or that the person is submitting reasonable alternative
recommendations or modifications to the board. If the person agrees with the
recommendations, they shall be considered to be the board's final
recommendations.

(3)
If the board
receives alternative recommendations or modifications under division (E)(2) of
this section, the board shall select final recommendations and submit them to
the person not later than thirty days after the receipt of the alternative
recommendations or modifications.

(1)
The board shall prepare a written,
dated statement certifying that the written notification required under this
section was submitted and that final recommendations were selected regarding
needed improvements and the costs of those improvements. The board shall
provide the person with the original of the statement so that the person can
include it with the application for a permit to install for the facility as
required under division (C) (5) of section
903.02 of the Revised Code. The
board shall retain a copy of the statement for its records.

(2)
If the board
fails to prepare a written, dated statement in accordance with division (F)(1)
of this section within seventy-five days of receiving the initial written
notification by certified mail from the person, the person instead shall file
with the application for a permit to install for the facility a notarized
affidavit declaring that the person has met the criteria established in this
section and that a written, dated statement was not received by the person from
the board.

(G)
If the person
receives a written, dated statement from the board as provided in division
(F)(1) of this section, the person shall construct, modify, and maintain
or finance the construction, modification, and maintenance of improvements as
provided in the board's final recommendations and with the approval and
oversight of the county engineer. If the person fails to do so, the board shall
notify the person by certified mail that the board intends to initiate
mediation with the person if the person remains out of compliance with the
final recommendations.

The board shall allow
sufficient time for the person to apply for and proceed to obtain, for the
purpose of financing the construction, modification, or maintenance of the
improvements, exemptions from taxation under sections
5709.63,
5709.632,
5709.73, and
5709.78 of the Revised Code or
state or federal grants that may be available.

If the person remains out
of compliance with the final recommendations, the board may initiate mediation
with the person in order to resolve the differences between them. If mediation
fails to resolve the differences, the board and the person first shall attempt
to resolve the differences through any legal remedies before seeking redress
through a court of common pleas.

(H)
If
the person subsequently submits an application under section
903.02 of the Revised Code for a
permit to modify the facility, or if the routes of travel to or from the
facility change for any reason other than road construction conducted by the
township, the board or the person may request that additional information be
provided in writing and shall proceed as provided in this section for the
notification and recommendation proceedings.

(1)
"Lease-purchase agreement" has the same meaning as a lease with an option to
purchase.

(2)
"Public
obligation" has the same meaning as in section
133.01 of the Revised
Code.

(B)
For any
purpose for which a board of township trustees, a joint police district board, a township fire district, a joint fire
district, or a fire and ambulance district is authorized to acquire real or
personal property, that board may enter into a lease-purchase agreement in
accordance with this section to acquire the property. The board's resolution
authorizing the lease-purchase agreement may provide for the issuance of
certificates of participation or other evidences of fractionalized interests in
the lease-purchase agreement, for the purpose of financing, or refinancing or
refunding, any public obligation that financed or refinanced the acquisition of
the property. Sections
9.94,
133.03, and
133.30 of the Revised Code shall
apply to any such fractionalized interests.

The lease-purchase
agreement shall provide for a series of terms in which no term extends beyond
the end of the fiscal year of the township or district in which that term
commences. In total, the terms provided for in the agreement shall be for not
more than the useful life of the real or personal property that is the subject
of the agreement. A property's useful life shall be determined either by the
maximum number of installment payments permitted under the statute that
authorizes the board to acquire the property or, if there is no such provision,
by the maximum number of years to maturity provided for the issuance of bonds
in division (B) of section
133.20 of the Revised Code for that
property. If the useful life cannot be determined under either of those
statutes, it shall be estimated as provided in division (C) of section
133.20 of the Revised Code.

The lease-purchase
agreement shall provide that, at the end of the final term in the agreement, if
all obligations of the township or district have been satisfied, the title to
the leased property shall vest in the township or district executing the
lease-purchase agreement, if that title has not vested in the township or
district before or during the lease terms; except that the lease-purchase
agreement may require the township or district to pay an additional lump sum
payment as a condition of obtaining that title.

(C)
A board of trustees that enters into a lease-purchase agreement under this
section may do any of the following with the property that is the subject of
the agreement:

(1)
If the
property is personal property, assign the board's rights to that
property;

(3)
If the property is real property, grant leases, easements, or licenses for
underlying land or facilities under the board's control for terms not exceeding
five years beyond the final term of the lease-purchase agreement.

(D)
The
authority granted in this section is in addition to, and not in derogation of,
any other financing authority provided by law.

(1)
Boards of township trustees, either severally or jointly, may provide,
maintain, and operate facilities for the collection, transfer, and disposal of
solid wastes or may enter into written contracts with the proper municipal or
county authorities or with independent contractors for such services for the
township or for a waste disposal district as provided in section
505.28 of the Revised Code.

(a)
If a board of township trustees enters
into a contract with an independent contractor under division (A)(1) of this
section, the contract may provide that the independent contractor is the
exclusive provider of any or all of the services described in that division for
the township or the waste disposal district. If the contract so provides, both
of the following apply:

(ii)
No other independent contractor or other
person or entity shall provide, in the township or waste disposal district, the
services agreed to in the contract during the contract period.

(b)
Whoever violates division
(A)(2)(a)(ii) of this section shall be fined one hundred fifty dollars for the
first offense and five hundred dollars for each subsequent offense. Each
collection, transfer, or disposal made in violation of that division
constitutes a separate offense. Fines collected under that division shall be
paid into the waste collection fund established under division (A) of section
505.31 of the Revised Code.

(B)
When so
required by rules adopted under division (G)(2) of section
343.01 of the Revised Code, a board
of township trustees, before constructing, enlarging, or modifying a solid
waste facility as defined in section
3734.01 of the Revised Code, shall
obtain approval for the facility from the board of county commissioners of the
county or board of directors of the joint solid waste management district, or
board of trustees of a regional solid waste management authority if such has
been formed under section
343.011 of the Revised Code, having
jurisdiction for compliance with the initial or amended solid waste management
plan of the district approved under section
3734.521,
3734.55, or
3734.56 of the Revised Code.

The board of township
trustees may create a waste disposal district under sections
505.27 to
505.33 of the Revised Code, by a
unanimous vote of the board and give notice thereof by a publication in
a
newspaper of general circulation in the township. If, within thirty days
after such publication, a protest petition is filed with the board, signed by
at least fifty per cent of the electors residing in the district, the act of
the board in creating such district shall be void. If a petition is filed with
the board asking for the creation of such a district in the township,
accompanied by a map clearly showing the boundaries of such district, and
signed by at least sixty-five per cent of the electors residing therein, with
addresses of such signers, the board shall, within sixty days, create such a
district.

Each district shall
be given a name, and the entire cost of any necessary equipment and labor shall
be apportioned against each district by the respective
boards.

The board of township trustees may levy, in any year, a
sufficient tax within the ten-mill limitation upon all taxable property in a
waste disposal district to provide and maintain waste disposal service and to
provide for the collection and disposal of tree leaves.

In the alternative, the board of township trustees of any
township that has provided or contracted for the collection or disposal of
garbage or refuse on behalf of the township or any district may establish, by
resolution, equitable charges of rents to be paid to the township for the use
and benefit of that service by every person, firm, or corporation whose
premises are so served. The charges shall constitute a lien upon the property
served and, if not paid when due, shall be collected in the same manner as
other township taxes.

The township or its officers shall not be liable for damages,
from any cause in performing waste disposal service. Private parties or firms
entering a contract to perform said service shall carry public liability and
property damage insurance, in an amount acceptable to the board of township
trustees, and shall present proper evidence of such insurance to the board.

(A)
Except as
otherwise provided in division (B) of this section, the township fiscal officer
shall collect the service charges for waste disposal service and administer
them under rules established by the board of township trustees. All of those
service charges shall be kept in a separate fund designated as the waste
collection fund and shall be appropriated and administered by the board. The
fund shall be used for payment of the costs of the management, maintenance, and
operation of the garbage and refuse collection and disposal system in the
township or several waste disposal districts. The board also may use the fund
for payment of the costs incurred by the township in relation to the collection
and disposal of tree leaves.

Service charges for waste disposal service collected from one
district cannot be used for any other district. If a district is abandoned or
discontinued, any balance remaining in the fund for that district shall be paid
into the general fund of the township.

(B)
When a board of township trustees
contracts with an independent contractor for the collection, transfer, and
disposal of solid wastes under section
505.27 of the Revised Code, the
contract may provide for the independent contractor to collect and keep the
service charges for the waste disposal services the contractor provides.

For the services arising in each fiscal year under sections
505.27 to
505.33 of the Revised Code, the
township fiscal officer shall be allowed the compensation fixed by the board of
township trustees. The compensation shall be paid semiannually, and shall be
charged back, and prorated against each waste disposal district as part of its
operating costs. Any increase required by the board in the bond of the fiscal
officer, and the costs of any necessary supplies, shall be prorated and charged
back to each district.

Annually, before the first day of October, the township fiscal
officer shall certify to the county auditor the names of the property owners
and a description of their lands that are delinquent as to waste disposal
service charges. The auditor then shall place the charges on the tax duplicate
for the ensuing December installment of taxes, for collection.

The board of township trustees may compound or release, in
whole or in part, a debt, obligation, judgment, or claim due the township, from
a bank in process of liquidation or operating under a conservatorship, or due
the board, except where any member of such board is personally interested as a
stockholder of the bank. The board shall enter upon its records a statement of
the facts and the reasons for such compounding or release.

All funds arising from the sale of bonds for the construction
or repair of viaducts, or for the purchase or condemnation of land for that
purpose, shall be paid into the township treasury, and shall be paid out and
expended upon the vouchers of the board of township trustees, or of the
officers in the township having charge of the repair of public roads or
streets.

Contracts for the improvements shall be made in the same manner
as other contracts. Vouchers to pay for the contracts, or for any portion of
the cost of the improvements, shall be drawn by the board or officers upon the
township fiscal officer, who shall keep an accurate account of moneys so
expended. The funds created by the sale of bonds for viaduct purposes shall be
known as the viaduct fund.

When the voters of a township determine to issue bonds for the
construction or repair of viaducts, or for the purchase or condemnation of the
land necessary for such improvements, the authority to make such improvements
is hereby conferred and the money arising from the sale of the bonds shall be
expended in the manner provided by section
505.35 of the Revised Code.

If a municipal corporation or the board of county commissioners
determines to construct or repair a viaduct over any street, steam railroad
tracks, or other place, where an overhead roadway or footway is deemed
necessary, under any law authorizing the construction of bridges or viaducts or
the elimination of grade crossings, and such construction or repair will
benefit the township, the board of township trustees may, by agreement with
such municipal corporation or the board of county commissioners, pay that part
of the cost and expense of such improvement, including compensations for land
taken and damages, as is deemed just by the board of township trustees. The
cost so assumed by the township shall be paid out of any funds in the treasury
of such township provided for the construction or repair of such viaduct, into
the treasury of such municipal corporation or county, to the credit of such
special fund, or, the board of township trustees may issue bonds for such
purpose.

(A)
The board of township trustees may establish all necessary rules to guard
against the occurrence of fires and to protect the property and lives of the
citizens against damage and accidents, and may, with the approval of the
specifications by the prosecuting attorney or, if the township has adopted
limited home rule government under Chapter 504. of the Revised Code, with the
approval of the specifications by the township's law director, purchase, lease,
lease with an option to purchase, or otherwise provide any fire apparatus,
mechanical resuscitators, or other equipment, appliances, materials, fire
hydrants, and water supply for fire-fighting purposes that seems advisable to
the board. The board shall provide for the care and maintenance of fire
equipment, and, for these purposes, may purchase, lease, lease with an option
to purchase, or construct and maintain necessary buildings, and it may
establish and maintain lines of fire-alarm communications within the limits of
the township. The board may employ one or more persons to maintain and operate
fire-fighting equipment, or it may enter into an agreement with a volunteer
fire company for the use and operation of fire-fighting equipment. The board
may compensate the members of a volunteer fire company on any basis and in any
amount that it considers equitable.

When the estimated cost
to purchase fire apparatus, mechanical resuscitators, other equipment,
appliances, materials, fire hydrants, buildings, or fire-alarm communications
equipment or services exceeds fifty thousand dollars, the contract shall be let
by competitive bidding. When competitive bidding is required, the board shall
advertise once a week for not less than two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of
general circulation within the township. The board may also cause notice to be
inserted in trade papers or other publications designated by it or to be
distributed by electronic means, including posting the notice on the board's
internet web site. If the board posts the notice on its web site, it may
eliminate the second notice otherwise required to be published in a newspaper
of general circulation within the township, provided that the first notice
published in such newspaper meets all of the following requirements:

(2)
It includes a statement that the notice is posted on the board's internet web
site.

(3)
It
includes the internet address of the board's internet web site.

(4)
It includes instructions describing how the notice may be accessed on the
board's internet web site.

The advertisement shall
include the time, date, and place where the clerk of the township, or the
clerk's designee, will read bids publicly. The time, date, and place of bid
openings may be extended to a later date by the board of township trustees,
provided that written or oral notice of the change shall be given to all
persons who have received or requested specifications not later than ninety-six
hours prior to the original time and date fixed for the opening. The board may
reject all the bids or accept the lowest and best bid, provided that the
successful bidder meets the requirements of section 153.54 of the Revised Code
when the contract is for the construction, demolition, alteration, repair, or
reconstruction of an improvement.

(B)
The boards of township trustees of any two or more townships, or the
legislative authorities of any two or more political subdivisions, or any
combination of these, may, through joint action, unite in the joint purchase,
lease, lease with an option to purchase, maintenance, use, and operation of
fire-fighting equipment, or for any other purpose designated in sections 505.37
to 505.42 of the Revised Code, and may prorate the expense of the joint action
on any terms that are mutually agreed upon.

(C)
The board of township trustees of any township may, by resolution, whenever it
is expedient and necessary to guard against the occurrence of fires or to
protect the property and lives of the citizens against damages resulting from
their occurrence, create a fire district of any portions of the township that
it considers necessary. The board may purchase, lease, lease with an option to
purchase, or otherwise provide any fire apparatus, appliances, materials, fire
hydrants, and water supply for fire-fighting purposes, or may contract for the
fire protection for the fire district as provided in section 9.60 of the
Revised Code. The fire district so created shall be given a separate name by
which it shall be known.

Additional
unincorporated territory of the township may be added to a fire district upon
the board's adoption of a resolution authorizing the addition. A municipal
corporation that is within or adjoining the township may be added to a fire
district upon the board's adoption of a resolution authorizing the addition and
the municipal legislative authority's adoption of a resolution or ordinance
requesting the addition of the municipal corporation to the fire
district.

If the township fire
district imposes a tax, additional unincorporated territory of the township or
a municipal corporation that is within or adjoining the township shall become
part of the fire district only after all of the following have occurred:

(1)
Adoption by the board of township trustees of a resolution approving the
expansion of the territorial limits of the district and, if the resolution
proposes to add a municipal corporation, adoption by the municipal legislative
authority of a resolution or ordinance requesting the addition of the municipal
corporation to the district;

(2)
Adoption by the board of township trustees of a resolution recommending the
extension of the tax to the additional territory;

(3)
Approval of the tax by the electors of the territory proposed for addition to
the district.

Each resolution of the
board adopted under division (C)(2) of this section shall state the name of the
fire district, a description of the territory to be added, and the rate and
termination date of the tax, which shall be the rate and termination date of
the tax currently in effect in the fire district.

The board of trustees
shall certify each resolution adopted under division (C)(2) of this section to
the board of elections in accordance with section 5705.19 of the Revised Code.
The election required under division (C)(3) of this section shall be held,
canvassed, and certified in the manner provided for the submission of tax
levies under section 5705.25 of the Revised Code, except that the question
appearing on the ballot shall read:

"Shall the territory
within ........................ (description of the proposed territory to be
added) be added to ........................ (name) fire district, and a
property tax at a rate of taxation not exceeding ...... (here insert tax rate)
be in effect for .......... (here insert the number of years the tax is to be
in effect or "a continuing period of time," as applicable)?"

If the question is
approved by at least a majority of the electors voting on it, the joinder shall
be effective as of the first day of July of the year following approval, and on
that date, the township fire district tax shall be extended to the taxable
property within the territory that has been added. If the territory that has
been added is a municipal corporation and if it had adopted a tax levy for fire
purposes, the levy is terminated on the effective date of the joinder.

Any municipal
corporation may withdraw from a township fire district created under division
(C) of this section by the adoption by the municipal legislative authority of a
resolution or ordinance ordering withdrawal. On the first day of July of the
year following the adoption of the resolution or ordinance of withdrawal, the
municipal corporation withdrawing ceases to be a part of the district, and the
power of the fire district to levy a tax upon taxable property in the
withdrawing municipal corporation terminates, except that the fire district
shall continue to levy and collect taxes for the payment of indebtedness within
the territory of the fire district as it was composed at the time the
indebtedness was incurred.

Upon the withdrawal of
any municipal corporation from a township fire district created under division
(C) of this section, the county auditor shall ascertain, apportion, and order a
division of the funds on hand, moneys and taxes in the process of collection
except for taxes levied for the payment of indebtedness, credits, and real and
personal property, either in money or in kind, on the basis of the valuation of
the respective tax duplicates of the withdrawing municipal corporation and the
remaining territory of the fire district.

A board of township
trustees may remove unincorporated territory of the township from the fire
district upon the adoption of a resolution authorizing the removal. On the
first day of July of the year following the adoption of the resolution, the
unincorporated township territory described in the resolution ceases to be a
part of the district, and the power of the fire district to levy a tax upon
taxable property in that territory terminates, except that the fire district
shall continue to levy and collect taxes for the payment of indebtedness within
the territory of the fire district as it was composed at the time the
indebtedness was incurred.

(D)
The board of township trustees of any township, the board of fire district
trustees of a fire district created under section 505.371 of the Revised Code,
or the legislative authority of any municipal corporation may purchase, lease,
or lease with an option to purchase the necessary fire-fighting equipment,
buildings, and sites for the township, fire district, or municipal corporation
and issue securities for that purpose with maximum maturities as provided in
section 133.20 of the Revised Code. The board of township trustees, board of
fire district trustees, or legislative authority may also construct any
buildings necessary to house fire-fighting equipment and issue securities for
that purpose with maximum maturities as provided in section 133.20 of the
Revised Code.

The board of township
trustees, board of fire district trustees, or legislative authority may issue
the securities of the township, fire district, or municipal corporation, signed
by the board or designated officer of the municipal corporation and attested by
the signature of the township fiscal officer, fire district clerk, or municipal
clerk, covering any deferred payments and payable at the times provided, which
securities shall bear interest not to exceed the rate determined as provided in
section 9.95 of the Revised Code, and shall not be subject to Chapter 133. of
the Revised Code. The legislation authorizing the issuance of the securities
shall provide for levying and collecting annually by taxation, amounts
sufficient to pay the interest on and principal of the securities. The
securities shall be offered for sale on the open market or given to the vendor
or contractor if no sale is made.

Section 505.40 of the
Revised Code does not apply to any securities issued, or any lease with an
option to purchase entered into, in accordance with this
division.

(E)
A board of
township trustees of any township or a board of fire district trustees of a
fire district created under section 505.371 of the Revised Code may purchase a
policy or policies of liability insurance for the officers, employees, and
appointees of the fire department, fire district, or joint fire district
governed by the board that includes personal injury liability coverage as to
the civil liability of those officers, employees, and appointees for false
arrest, detention, or imprisonment, malicious prosecution, libel, slander,
defamation or other violation of the right of privacy, wrongful entry or
eviction, or other invasion of the right of private occupancy, arising out of
the performance of their duties.

When a board of
township trustees cannot, by deed of gift or by purchase and upon terms it
considers reasonable, procure land for a township fire station that is needed
in order to respond in reasonable time to a fire or medical emergency, the
board may appropriate land for that purpose under sections 163.01 to 163.22 of
the Revised Code. If it is necessary to acquire additional adjacent land for
enlarging or improving the fire station, the board may purchase, appropriate,
or accept a deed of gift for the land for these purposes.

(F)
As used in this division, "emergency medical service organization" has the same
meaning as in section 4766.01 of the Revised Code.

A board of township
trustees, by adoption of an appropriate resolution, may choose to have the
state board
of emergency medical, fire, and
transportation services license any emergency medical service
organization it operates. If the board adopts such a resolution, Chapter 4766.
of the Revised Code, except for sections 4766.06 and 4766.99 of the Revised
Code, applies to the organization. All rules adopted under the applicable
sections of that chapter also apply to the organization. A board of township
trustees, by adoption of an appropriate resolution, may remove its emergency
medical service organization from the jurisdiction of the
state board
of emergency medical, fire, and
transportation services.

(A)
The boards of township trustees of one or
more townships and the legislative authorities of one or more municipal
corporations, or the legislative authorities of two or more municipal
corporations, or the boards of township trustees of two or more townships, may,
by adoption of a joint resolution by a majority of the members of each board of
township trustees and by a majority of the members of the legislative authority
of each municipal corporation, create a joint fire district comprising the
municipal corporations and all or any portions of the townships as are mutually
agreed upon. A joint fire district so created shall be given a name different
from the name of any participating township or municipal corporation.

(B)
The governing body of the
joint fire district shall be a board of fire district trustees, which shall
include one representative from each board of township trustees and one
representative from the legislative authority of each municipal corporation in
the district. The board of fire district trustees may exercise the same powers
as are granted to a board of township trustees in sections
505.37 to
505.45 of the Revised Code,
including, but not limited to, the power to levy a tax upon all taxable
property in the fire district as provided in section
505.39 of the Revised Code. The
board of fire district trustees may be compensated at a rate not to exceed
thirty dollars per meeting, not to exceed fifteen meetings per year, and may be
reimbursed for all necessary expenses incurred. The board shall employ a clerk
of the board of fire district trustees.

(1)
The
board of fire district trustees may establish reasonable charges for the use of
ambulance or emergency medical services. The board may establish different
charges for residents and nonresidents of the district, and may waive, at its
discretion, all or part of the charge for any resident of the district. The
charge for nonresidents shall be an amount not less than the authorized
medicare reimbursement rate, except that if, prior to February 4, 1998, the
board had different charges for residents and nonresidents and the charge for
nonresidents was less than the authorized medicare reimbursement rate, the
board may charge nonresidents less than the authorized medicare reimbursement
rate.

(2)
In the resolution
creating the joint fire district, the political subdivisions that create the
district may provide that any of those political subdivisions may agree to pay
any charges for the use of ambulance or emergency medical services that the
board of fire district trustees establishes under division (C)(1) of this
section and that are incurred by the residents of the particular political
subdivision. Unless the board elects pursuant to that division to waive all or
part of the charges for the use of ambulance or emergency medical services that
any resident of the district incurs, the residents of a particular political
subdivision that has not so agreed to pay the charges for the use of ambulance
or emergency medical services incurred by its residents shall pay those
charges.

(3)
Charges collected
under division (C) of this section shall be kept in a separate fund designated
as the ambulance and emergency medical services fund and shall be appropriated
and administered by the board. The fund shall be used for the payment of the
costs of the management, maintenance, and operation of ambulance and emergency
medical services in the district.

(4)
As used in division (C) of this section,
"authorized medicare reimbursement rate" has the same meaning as in section
505.84 of the Revised Code.

(D)
Any municipal
corporation or township, or parts of them, may join an existing joint fire
district by the adoption of a resolution requesting such membership and upon
approval of the board of fire district trustees. Any municipal corporation or
township may withdraw from a joint fire district created under this section, by
the adoption of a resolution ordering withdrawal. On or after the first day of
January of the year following the adoption of the resolution of withdrawal, the
municipal corporation or township withdrawing ceases to be a part of such
district, and the power of the district to levy a tax upon taxable property in
the withdrawing township or municipal corporation terminates, except that the
district shall continue to levy and collect taxes for the payment of
indebtedness within the territory of the district as it was comprised at the
time the indebtedness was incurred.

Upon the withdrawal of any township or municipal corporation
from a joint fire district created under this section, the county auditor shall
ascertain, apportion, and order a division of the funds on hand, including
funds in the ambulance and emergency medical services fund, moneys and taxes in
the process of collection, except for taxes levied for the payment of
indebtedness, credits, and real and personal property, either in money or in
kind, on the basis of the valuation of the respective tax duplicates of the
withdrawing municipal corporation or township and the remaining territory of
the joint fire district.

When the number of townships and municipal corporations
comprising a joint fire district is reduced to one, the joint fire district
ceases to exist by operation of law, and the funds, credits, and property
remaining after apportionments to withdrawing municipal corporations or
townships shall be assumed by the one remaining township or municipal
corporation. When a joint fire district ceases to exist and an indebtedness
remains unpaid, the board of county commissioners shall continue to levy and
collect taxes for the payment of that indebtedness within the territory of the
joint fire district as it was comprised at the time the indebtedness was
incurred.

(E)
Neither this
section nor any other section of the Revised Code requires, or shall be
construed to require, that the fire chief of a joint fire district be a
resident of the fire district.

Before entering upon the duties of his office, the clerk of the
board of fire district trustees shall execute a bond, in the amount and with
surety to be approved by the board of fire district trustees, payable to the
state, conditioned for the faithful performance of all the official duties
required of him. Such bond shall be deposited with the presiding officer of the
board, and a copy thereof, certified by him, shall be filed with the county
auditor.

The board of township
trustees may, by resolution, adopt by incorporation by reference a standard
code pertaining to fire, fire hazards, and fire prevention prepared and
promulgated by the state or any department, board, or other agency of the
state, or any such code prepared and promulgated by a public or private
organization that publishes a model or standard code.

After the adoption of
the code by the board, a notice clearly identifying the code, stating the
purpose of the code, and stating that a complete copy of the code is on file
with the township fiscal officer for inspection by the public and also on file
in the law library of the county in which the township is located and that the
fiscal officer has copies available for distribution to the public at cost,
shall be posted by the fiscal officer in five conspicuous places in the
township for thirty days before becoming effective. The notice required by this
section shall also be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the
township once a week for three consecutive weeks or as
provided in section
7.16 of the
Revised Code. If the adopting township amends or deletes any provision of
the code, the notice shall contain a brief summary of the deletion or
amendment.

If the agency that
originally promulgated or published the code thereafter amends the code, any
township that has adopted the code pursuant to this section may adopt the
amendment or change by incorporation by reference in the same manner as
provided for adoption of the original code.

No person shall violate a provision of a standard code or
regulation adopted under section
505.373 or division (C) of section
505.375 of the Revised Code. Each
day of continued violation of this section shall constitute a separate offense.

(a)
The boards of township trustees of one or more townships and the legislative
authorities of one or more municipal corporations, or the legislative
authorities of two or more municipal corporations, or the boards of township
trustees of two or more townships, may negotiate an agreement to form a fire
and ambulance district for the delivery of both fire and ambulance services.
The agreement shall be ratified by the adoption of a joint resolution by a
majority of the members of each board of township trustees involved and a
majority of the members of the legislative authority of each municipal
corporation involved. The joint resolution shall specify a date on which the
fire and ambulance district shall come into being.

(b)
If a joint fire district created under section 505.371 of the Revised Code or a
joint ambulance district created under section 505.71 of the Revised Code is
dissolved to facilitate the creation of a fire and ambulance district under
division (A)(1)(a) of this section, the townships and municipal corporations
forming the fire and ambulance district may transfer to the fire and ambulance
district any of the funds on hand, moneys and taxes in the process of
collection, credits, and real and personal property apportioned to them under
division (D) of section 505.371 of the Revised Code or section 505.71 of the
Revised Code, as applicable, for use by the fire and ambulance district in
accordance with this section.

(a)
The board of trustees of a joint ambulance district created under section
505.71 of the Revised Code and the board of fire district trustees of a joint
fire district created under section 505.371 of the Revised Code may negotiate
to combine their two joint districts into a single fire and ambulance district
for the delivery of both fire and ambulance services, if the geographic area
covered by the combining joint districts is exactly the same. Both boards shall
adopt a joint resolution ratifying the agreement and setting a date on which
the fire and ambulance district shall come into being.

(b)
On that date, the joint fire district and the joint ambulance district shall
cease to exist, and the power of each to levy a tax upon taxable property shall
terminate, except that any levy of a tax for the payment of indebtedness within
the territory of the joint fire or joint ambulance district as it was composed
at the time the indebtedness was incurred shall continue to be collected by the
successor fire and ambulance district if the indebtedness remains unpaid. All
funds and other property of the joint districts shall become the property of
the fire and ambulance district, unless otherwise provided in the negotiated
agreement. The agreement shall provide for the settlement of all debts and
obligations of the joint districts.

(1)
The governing body of a fire and ambulance district created under division
(A)(1) or (2) of this section shall be a board of trustees of at least three
but no more than nine members, appointed as provided in the agreement creating
the district. Members of the board may be compensated at a rate not to exceed
thirty dollars per meeting for not more than fifteen meetings per year, and may
be reimbursed for all necessary expenses incurred, as provided in the agreement
creating the district.

(2)
The board shall employ a clerk and other employees as it considers best,
including a fire chief or fire prevention officers, and shall fix their
compensation. Neither this section nor any other section of the Revised Code
requires, or shall be construed to require, that the fire chief of a fire and
ambulance district be a resident of the district.

Before entering upon
the duties of office, the clerk shall execute a bond, in the amount and with
surety to be approved by the board, payable to the state, conditioned for the
faithful performance of all of the clerk's official duties. The clerk shall
deposit the bond with the presiding officer of the board, who shall file a copy
of it, certified by the presiding officer, with the county auditor of the
county containing the most territory in the district.

The board also shall
provide for the appointment of a fiscal officer for the district and may enter
into agreements with volunteer fire companies for the use and operation of
fire-fighting equipment. Volunteer firefighters acting under such an agreement
are subject to the requirements for volunteer firefighters set forth in
division (A) of section 505.38 of the Revised Code.

(3)
Employees of the district shall not be removed from office except as provided
by sections 733.35 to 733.39 of the Revised Code, except that, to initiate
removal proceedings, the board shall designate a private citizen or, if the
employee is employed as a firefighter, the board may designate the fire chief,
to investigate, conduct the proceedings, and prepare the necessary charges in
conformity with those sections, and except that the board shall perform the
functions and duties specified for the municipal legislative authority under
those sections. The board may pay reasonable compensation to any private
citizen hired for services rendered in the matter.

(4)
No person shall be appointed as a permanent full-time paid member of the
district whose duties include fire fighting, or be appointed as a volunteer
firefighter, unless that person has received a certificate issued under former
section 3303.07 or section 4765.55 of the Revised Code evidencing satisfactory
completion of a firefighter training program. The board may send its officers
and firefighters to schools of instruction designed to promote the efficiency
of firefighters and, if authorized in advance, may pay their necessary expenses
from the funds used for the maintenance and operation of the district.

The board may choose,
by adoption of an appropriate resolution, to have the
state board
of emergency medical, fire, and
transportation services license any emergency medical service
organization it operates. If the board adopts such a resolution, Chapter 4766.
of the Revised Code, except for sections 4766.06 and 4766.99 of the Revised
Code, applies to the organization. All rules adopted under the applicable
sections of that chapter also apply to the organization. The board may remove,
by resolution, its emergency medical service organization from the jurisdiction
of the state
board of emergency medical, fire, and
transportation services.

(C)
The board of trustees of a fire and ambulance district created under division
(A)(1) or (2) of this section may exercise the following powers:

(1)
Purchase or otherwise provide any fire apparatus, mechanical resuscitators, or
other fire or ambulance equipment, appliances, or materials; fire hydrants; and
water supply for firefighting purposes that seems advisable to the
board;

(2)
Provide
for the care and maintenance of equipment and, for that purpose, purchase,
lease, lease with an option to purchase, or construct and maintain necessary
buildings;

(3)
Establish
and maintain lines of fire-alarm communications within the limits of the
district;

(4)
Appropriate land for a fire station or medical emergency unit needed in order
to respond in reasonable time to a fire or medical emergency, in accordance
with Chapter 163. of the Revised Code;

(5)
Purchase, appropriate, or accept a deed or gift of land to enlarge or improve a
fire station or medical emergency unit;

(6)
Purchase, lease, lease with an option to purchase, maintain, and use all
materials, equipment, vehicles, buildings, and land necessary to perform its
duties;

(7)
Contract
for a period not to exceed three years with one or more townships, municipal
corporations, counties, joint fire districts, joint ambulance districts,
governmental agencies, nonprofit corporations, or private ambulance owners
located either within or outside the state, to furnish or receive ambulance
services or emergency medical services within the several territories of the
contracting parties, if the contract is first authorized by all boards of
trustees and legislative authorities concerned;

(8)
Establish reasonable charges for the use of ambulance or emergency medical
services under the same conditions under which a board of fire district
trustees may establish those charges under section 505.371 of the Revised
Code;

(9)
Establish
all necessary rules to guard against the occurrence of fires and to protect
property and lives against damage and accidents;

(10)
Adopt a standard code pertaining to fire, fire hazards, and fire prevention
prepared and promulgated by the state or by a public or private organization
that publishes a model or standard code;

(11)
Provide for charges for false alarms at commercial establishments in the same
manner as joint fire districts are authorized to do under section 505.391 of
the Revised Code;

(12)
Issue
bonds and other evidences of indebtedness, subject to Chapter 133. of the
Revised Code, but only after approval by a vote of the electors of the district
as provided by section 133.18 of the Revised Code;

(13)
To provide the services and equipment it considers necessary, levy a sufficient
tax, subject to Chapter 5705. of the Revised Code, on all the taxable property
in the district.

(D)
Any municipal corporation or township may join an existing fire and ambulance
district, whether created under division (A)(1) or (2) of this section, by its
legislative authority's adoption of a resolution requesting the membership and
upon approval of the board of trustees of the district. Any municipal
corporation or township may withdraw from a district, whether created under
division (A)(1) or (2) of this section, by its legislative authority's adoption
of a resolution ordering withdrawal. Upon its withdrawal, the municipal
corporation or township ceases to be a part of the district, and the district's
power to levy a tax on taxable property in the withdrawing township or
municipal corporation terminates, except that the district shall continue to
levy and collect taxes for the payment of indebtedness within the territory of
the district as it was composed at the time the indebtedness was incurred.

Upon the withdrawal of
any township or municipal corporation from a district, the county auditor of
the county containing the most territory in the district shall ascertain,
apportion, and order a division of the funds on hand, including funds in the
ambulance and emergency medical services fund, moneys and taxes in the process
of collection, except for taxes levied for the payment of indebtedness,
credits, and real and personal property on the basis of the valuation of the
respective tax duplicates of the withdrawing municipal corporation or township
and the remaining territory of the district.

When any expenditure of a fire and ambulance district, other
than for the compensation of district employees, exceeds fifty thousand
dollars, the contract for the expenditure shall be in writing and made with the
lowest and best bidder after advertising once a week for not less than two
consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation within the district.
The board of trustees of a fire and ambulance district may also cause notice to
be inserted in trade papers or other publications designated by it or to be
distributed by electronic means, including posting the notice on the board's
internet web site. If the board posts the notice on its web site, it may
eliminate the second notice otherwise required to be published in a newspaper
of general circulation within the district, provided that the first notice
published in such newspaper meets all of the following requirements:

(B)
It
includes a statement that the notice is posted on the board's internet web
site.

(C)
It includes the internet
address of the board's internet web site.

(D)
It includes instructions describing how
the notice may be accessed on the board's internet web site.

The bids shall be opened and shall be publicly read by the
clerk of the district, or the clerk's designee, at the time, date, and place
specified in the advertisement to bidders or the specifications. The time,
date, and place of bid openings may be extended to a later date by the board of
trustees of the district, provided that written or oral notice of the change
shall be given to all persons who have received or requested specifications no
later than ninety-six hours prior to the original time and date fixed for the
opening.

Each bid on any contract shall contain the full name of every
person interested in the bid. If the bid is for a contract for the
construction, demolition, alteration, repair, or reconstruction of an
improvement, it shall meet the requirements of section
153.54 of the Revised Code. If the
bid is for any other contract, it shall be accompanied by a sufficient bond or
certified check, cashier's check, or money order on a solvent bank or savings
and loan association that, if the bid is accepted, a contract will be entered
into and the performance of it will be properly secured. If the bid for work
embraces both labor and material, it shall be separately stated, with the price
of the labor and the material. The board may reject any and all bids. The
contract shall be between the district and the bidder, and the district shall
pay the contract price in cash. When a bonus is offered for completion of a
contract prior to a specified date, the board may exact a prorated penalty in
like sum for each day of delay beyond the specified date. When there is reason
to believe there is collusion or combination among bidders, the bids of those
concerned shall be rejected.

A volunteer firefighter appointed pursuant to this chapter is a bona fide
volunteer and not an employee for purposes of section 513 of the "Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act," 124 Stat. 119 (2010),
26 U.S.C.
4980H, if, for providing those fire
protection services, the volunteer receives any of the benefits provided in
Chapter 146., 4121., or 4123. or section
9.65,
505.23,
3333.26,
3923.13, or
4113.41 of the Revised
Code.

(A)
In each township or fire district that
has a fire department, the head of the department shall be a fire chief,
appointed by the board of township trustees, except that, in a joint fire
district, the fire chief shall be appointed by the board of fire district
trustees. Neither this section nor any other section of the Revised Code
requires, or shall be construed to require, that the fire chief be a resident
of the township or fire district.

The board shall provide for the employment of firefighters as
it considers best and shall fix their compensation. No person shall be
appointed as a permanent full-time paid member, whose duties include fire
fighting, of the fire department of any township or fire district unless that
person has received a certificate issued under former section
3303.07 or section
4765.55 of the Revised Code
evidencing satisfactory completion of a firefighter training program. Those
appointees shall continue in office until removed from office as provided by
sections 733.35 to
733.39 of the Revised Code. To
initiate removal proceedings, and for that purpose, the board shall designate
the fire chief or a private citizen to investigate the conduct and prepare the
necessary charges in conformity with those sections.

In case of the removal of a fire chief or any member of the
fire department of a township or fire district, an appeal may be had from the
decision of the board to the court of common pleas of the county in which the
township or fire district fire department is situated to determine the
sufficiency of the cause of removal. The appeal from the findings of the board
shall be taken within ten days.

No person who is appointed as a volunteer firefighter of the
fire department of any township or fire district shall remain in that position
unless either of the following applies:

(1)
Within one year of the appointment, the
person has received a certificate issued under former section
3303.07 of the Revised Code or
section 4765.55 of the Revised Code
evidencing satisfactory completion of a firefighter training program.

(2)
The person began serving as a
permanent full-time paid firefighter with the fire department of a city or
village prior to July 2, 1970, or as a volunteer firefighter with the fire
department of a city, village, or other township or fire district prior to July
2, 1979, and receives a certificate issued under division (C)(3) of section
4765.55 of the Revised Code.

No person shall receive an appointment under this section, in
the case of a volunteer firefighter, unless the person has, not more than sixty
days prior to receiving the appointment, passed a physical examination, given
by a licensed physician, a physician assistant, a clinical nurse specialist, a
certified nurse practitioner, or a certified nurse-midwife, showing that the
person meets the physical requirements necessary to perform the duties of the
position to which the person is appointed as established by the board of
township trustees having jurisdiction over the appointment. The appointing
authority, prior to making an appointment, shall file with the Ohio police and
fire pension fund or the local volunteer fire fighters' dependents fund board a
copy of the report or findings of that licensed physician, physician assistant,
clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse practitioner, or certified
nurse-midwife. The professional fee for the physical examination shall be paid
for by the board of township trustees.

(B)
In each township not having a fire
department, the board of township trustees shall appoint a fire prevention
officer who shall exercise all of the duties of a fire chief except those
involving the maintenance and operation of fire apparatus. The board may
appoint one or more deputy fire prevention officers who shall exercise the
duties assigned by the fire prevention officer.

The board may fix the compensation for the fire prevention
officer and the fire prevention officer's deputies as it considers best. The
board shall appoint each fire prevention officer and deputy for a one-year
term. An appointee may be reappointed at the end of a term to another one-year
term. Any appointee may be removed from office during a term as provided by
sections 733.35 to
733.39 of the Revised Code. Section
505.45 of the Revised Code extends
to those officers.

(1)
Division (A) of this section does not
apply to any township that has a population of ten thousand or more persons
residing within the township and outside of any municipal corporation, that has
its own fire department employing ten or more full-time paid employees, and
that has a civil service commission established under division (B) of section
124.40 of the Revised Code. The
township shall comply with the procedures for the employment, promotion, and
discharge of firefighters provided by Chapter 124. of the Revised Code, except
as otherwise provided in divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section.

(2)
The board of township trustees of the
township may appoint the fire chief, and any person so appointed shall be in
the unclassified service under section
124.11 of the Revised Code and
shall serve at the pleasure of the board. Neither this section nor any other
section of the Revised Code requires, or shall be construed to require, that
the fire chief be a resident of the township. A person who is appointed fire
chief under these conditions and who is removed by the board or resigns from
the position is entitled to return to the classified service in the township
fire department in the position held just prior to the appointment as fire
chief.

(3)
The appointing
authority of an urban township, as defined in section
504.01 of the Revised Code, may
appoint to a vacant position any one of the three highest scorers on the
eligible list for a promotional examination.

(4)
The board of township trustees shall
determine the number of personnel required and establish salary schedules and
conditions of employment not in conflict with Chapter 124. of the Revised Code.

(5)
No person shall receive an
original appointment as a permanent full-time paid member of the fire
department of the township described in this division unless the person has
received a certificate issued under former section
3303.07 or section
4765.55 of the Revised Code
evidencing the satisfactory completion of a firefighter training program.

(6)
Persons employed as
firefighters in the township described in this division on the date a civil
service commission is appointed pursuant to division (B) of section
124.40 of the Revised Code, without
being required to pass a competitive examination or a firefighter training
program, shall retain their employment and any rank previously granted them by
action of the board of township trustees or otherwise, but those persons are
eligible for promotion only by compliance with Chapter 124. of the Revised
Code.

(A)
The fire chief of a township or fire
district may request the superintendent of BCII to conduct a criminal records
check with respect to any person who is under consideration for appointment or
employment as a permanent, full-time paid firefighter or any person who is
under consideration for appointment as a volunteer firefighter.

(1)
The
fire chief of the township or fire district may request that the superintendent
of BCII obtain information from the federal bureau of investigation as a part
of the criminal records check requested pursuant to division (A) of this
section.

(2)
A fire chief
authorized by division (A) of this section to request a criminal records check
shall provide to each person for whom the fire chief intends to request a
criminal records check a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division
(C)(1) of section
109.578 of the Revised Code and a
standard impression sheet to obtain fingerprint impressions prescribed pursuant
to division (C)(2) of section
109.578 of the Revised Code, obtain
the completed form and impression sheet from the person, and forward the
completed form and impression sheet to the superintendent of BCII at the time
the criminal records check is requested.

(3)
Any person subject to a criminal records
check who receives a copy of the form and a copy of the impression sheet
pursuant to division (B)(2) of this section and who is requested to complete
the form and provide a set of fingerprint impressions shall complete the form
or provide all the information necessary to complete the form and shall provide
the impression sheet with the impressions of the person's fingerprints. If a
person fails to provide the information necessary to complete the form or fails
to provide impressions of the person's fingerprints, the appointing authority
shall not appoint or employ the person as a permanent, full-time paid
firefighter or a volunteer firefighter.

(1)
Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(2) of this section, an appointing
authority shall not appoint or employ a person as a permanent, full-time paid
firefighter or a volunteer firefighter if the fire chief has requested a
criminal records check pursuant to division (A) of this section and the
criminal records check indicates that the person previously has been convicted
of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:

(c)
A violation of an existing or
former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is
substantially equivalent to any of the offenses described in division (C)(1)(a)
or (b) of this section.

(2)
Notwithstanding division (C)(1) of this
section, an appointing authority may appoint or employ a person as a permanent,
full-time paid firefighter or a volunteer firefighter if all of the following
apply:

(a)
The fire chief has requested a
criminal records check pursuant to division (A) of this section.

(b)
The criminal records check indicates that
the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the
offenses described in division (C)(1) of this section.

(c)
The person meets rehabilitation standards
established in rules adopted under division (E) of this section.

(3)
If a fire chief requests a
criminal records check pursuant to division (A) of this section, an appointing
authority may appoint or employ a person as a permanent, full-time paid
firefighter or volunteer firefighter conditionally until the criminal records
check is completed and the fire chief receives the results. If the results of
the criminal records check indicate that, pursuant to division (C)(1) of this
section, the person subject to the criminal records check does not qualify for
appointment or employment, the fire chief shall release the person from
appointment or employment.

(D)
The fire chief shall pay to the bureau of
criminal identification and investigation the fee prescribed pursuant to
division (C)(3) of section
109.578 of the Revised Code for
each criminal records check conducted in accordance with that section. The fire
chief may charge the applicant who is subject to the criminal records check a
fee for the costs the fire chief incurs in obtaining the criminal records
check. A fee charged under this division shall not exceed the amount of fees
the fire chief pays for the criminal records check. If a fee is charged under
this division, the fire chief shall notify the applicant at the time of the
applicant's initial application for appointment or employment of the amount of
the fee and that, unless the fee is paid, the applicant will not be considered
for appointment or employment.

(E)
The appointing authority shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of
the Revised Code to implement this section. The rules shall include
rehabilitation standards a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty
to an offense listed in division (C)(1) of this section must meet for the
appointing authority to appoint or employ the person as a permanent, full-time
paid firefighter or a volunteer firefighter.

(F)
A fire chief who intends to request a
criminal records check for an applicant shall inform the applicant, at the time
of the person's initial application for appointment or employment, that the
applicant is required to provide a set of impressions of the applicant's
fingerprints and that the fire chief requires a criminal records check to be
conducted and satisfactorily completed in accordance with section
109.578 of the Revised Code.

(1)
"Appointing authority" means any person
or body that has the authority to hire, appoint, or employ permanent, full-time
paid firefighters and volunteer firefighters under section
505.38 of the Revised Code.

(2)
"Criminal records check" has
the same meaning as in section
109.578 of the Revised Code.

(3)
"Superintendent of BCII" has
the same meaning as in section
2151.86 of the Revised Code.

The board of township trustees may, in any year, levy a
sufficient tax upon all taxable property in the township or in a fire district,
to provide protection against fire, to provide and maintain fire apparatus and
appliances, buildings and sites for apparatus and appliances, sources of water
supply, materials for such water supply, lines of fire-alarm telegraph, and to
pay permanent, part-time, or volunteer fire-fighting companies to operate such
equipment.

(A)
If, after the fire department of a
township, township fire district, or joint fire district, or a private fire
company with which the fire department of a township, township fire district,
or joint fire district contracts for fire protection, responds to a false alarm
from an automatic fire alarm system at a commercial establishment or
residential building, the board of township trustees gives written notice by
certified mail that it may assess a charge of up to three hundred dollars for
each subsequent false alarm occurring after three false alarms by that system
within the same calendar year, the board of township trustees may assess that
charge. This notice shall be mailed to the owner and the lessee, if any, of the
building in which the system is installed. After the board gives this notice,
the board need not give any additional written notices before assessing a
charge for a false alarm as provided by this section.

(B)
If payment of the bill assessing a charge
for a false alarm is not received within thirty days, the township fiscal
officer shall send a notice by certified mail to the manager and to the owner,
if different, of the real estate of which the commercial establishment is a
part, or to the occupant, lessee, agent, or tenant and to the owner, if
different, of the real estate of which the residential building is a part,
indicating that failure to pay the bill within thirty days, or to show just
cause why the bill should not be paid within thirty days, will result in the
assessment of a lien upon the real estate in the amount of the bill. If payment
is not received or just cause for nonpayment is not shown within those thirty
days, the amount of the bill shall be entered upon the tax duplicate, shall be
a lien upon the real estate from the date of the entry, and shall be collected
as other taxes and returned to the township treasury to be earmarked for use
for fire services.

(C)
As used in
this section, "commercial establishment" means a building or buildings in an
area used primarily for nonresidential, commercial purposes.

No bonds shall be issued by the board of township trustees for
the purpose of providing fire apparatus and appliances, buildings or sites
therefor, sources of water supply and materials therefor, or for the
establishment and maintenance of lines of fire-alarm telegraph, or for the
payment of permanent, part-time, or volunteer fire-fighting companies to
operate such equipment, unless approved by vote of the people in a township or
fire district in the manner provided by section
133.18 of the Revised Code, and in
no event in an amount exceeding the greater of one hundred fifty thousand
dollars or two per cent of the total value of all property in the township as
listed and assessed for taxation.

Pursuant to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, the board of
trustees of a fire district organized under division (C) of section
505.37 of the Revised Code may
issue bonds for the purpose of acquiring fire-fighting equipment, buildings,
and sites for the district or for the purpose of constructing or improving
buildings to house fire-fighting equipment.

Members of volunteer fire companies, or persons employed by a
township on a part-time basis to operate or maintain fire-fighting equipment,
or persons employed in any manner incidental to the operation or maintenance of
such equipment, are township employees for the purposes of workers'
compensation insurance, the same as though regularly employed as designated in
section 4123.01 of the Revised Code.

The proceeds of bonds issued under section
505.40 of the Revised Code, other
than any premium and accrued interest which is credited to the sinking fund,
shall be placed in the township treasury to the credit of a fund to be known as
"the fire equipment fund." In the case of a joint fire district created under
section 505.371 of the Revised Code, such
proceeds shall be placed in the treasury of the joint fire district to the
credit of the joint fire district fire equipment fund. Such fund shall be paid
out on the order of the board of township trustees or, in the case of a joint
fire district, the board of fire district trustees. Such board may enter into
contracts for the purpose set forth in sections
505.37 to 505.42 of the Revised
Code, subject to sections
731.14 to
731.16 of the Revised Code except
as otherwise provided in sections
505.08 and
505.101 of the Revised Code.

In order to obtain
police protection, or to obtain additional police protection, any township may
enter into a contract with one or more townships, municipal corporations, park
districts created pursuant to section
511.18 or
1545.01 of the Revised Code,
county sheriffs, joint police districts, or with a governmental
entity of an adjoining state upon any terms that are agreed to by them, for
services of police departments or use of police equipment, or the interchange
of the service of police departments or use of police equipment within the
several territories of the contracting subdivisions, if the contract is first
authorized by respective boards of township trustees or other legislative
bodies. The cost of the contract may be paid for from the township general fund
or from funds received pursuant to the passage of a levy authorized pursuant to
division (J) of section
5705.19 and section
5705.25 of the Revised
Code.

Chapter 2744: of the
Revised Code, insofar as it is applicable to the operation of police
departments, applies to the contracting political subdivisions and police
department members when the members are rendering service outside their own
subdivision pursuant to the contract.

Police department
members acting outside the subdivision in which they are employed may
participate in any pension or indemnity fund established by their employer to
the same extent as while acting within the employing subdivision, and are
entitled to all the rights and benefits of Chapter 4123. of the Revised Code,
to the same extent as while performing service within the subdivision.

The contract may
provide for a fixed annual charge to be paid at the times agreed upon and
stipulated in the contract.

The police department of any township or township police
district may provide police protection to any county, municipal corporation, or
township of this state, to a park district created pursuant to section
511.18 or
1545.01 of the Revised Code, or to
a governmental entity of an adjoining state without a contract to provide
police protection, upon the approval, by resolution, of the board of township
trustees of the township in which the department is located and upon
authorization by an officer or employee of the police department providing the
police protection who is designated by title of office or position, pursuant to
the resolution of the board of township trustees, to give such authorization.

Chapter 2744: of the Revised Code, insofar as it applies to the
operation of police departments, shall apply to any township police department
or township police district and to its members when such members are rendering
police services pursuant to this section outside the township or township
police district by which they are employed.

Police department members acting, as provided in this section,
outside the township or township police district by which they are employed
shall be entitled to participate in any pension or indemnity fund established
by their employer to the same extent as while acting within the township or
township police district by which they are employed. Those members shall be
entitled to all the rights and benefits of Chapter 4123. of the Revised Code to
the same extent as while performing services within the township or township
police district by which they are employed.

As used in this section, "Chautauqua assembly" has the same
meaning as in section
4511.90 of the Revised Code.

Upon the approval, by resolution, of the board of township
trustees of the township or township police district in which the department or
office is located, the police department of any township or township police
district or the office of any township police constable may contract with any
port authority or Chautauqua assembly, and any port authority or Chautauqua
assembly may contract with any such department or office, to have the
department's members or the office's constables provide police protection to
the port authority or Chautauqua assembly with which the department or office
has contracted.

Chapter 2744: of the Revised Code, insofar as it applies to the
operation of police departments, applies to any township police department,
township police district, or township police constable's office, and to its
members or constables when they are rendering service outside their own
subdivision pursuant to a contract entered into under this section.

Police department members and constables acting outside the
subdivision in which they are employed may participate in any pension or
indemnity fund established by their employer to the same extent as while acting
within the employing subdivision, and are entitled to all the rights and
benefits of Chapter 4123. of the Revised Code, to the same extent as while
performing service within the subdivision.

(A)
"Emergency
medical service organization" has the same meaning as in section 4765.01 of the
Revised Code.

(B)
"State
agency" means all departments, boards, offices, commissions, agencies,
colleges, universities, institutions, and other instrumentalities of this or
another state.

In order to obtain the
services of ambulance service organizations, to obtain additional services from
ambulance service organizations in times of emergency, to obtain the services
of emergency medical service organizations, or, if the township is located in a
county with a population of forty thousand or less, to obtain the services of
nonemergency patient transport service organizations, a township may enter into
a contract with one or more state agencies, townships, municipal corporations,
counties, nonprofit corporations, joint emergency medical services districts,
fire and ambulance districts, or private ambulance owners, regardless of
whether such state agencies, townships, municipal corporations, counties,
nonprofit corporations, joint emergency medical services districts, fire and
ambulance districts, or private ambulance owners are located within or outside
the state, upon such terms as are agreed to by them, to furnish or receive
services from ambulance or emergency medical service organizations or, if the
township is located in a county with a population of forty thousand or less, to
furnish or receive services from nonemergency patient transport service
organizations, or may enter into a contract for the interchange of services
from ambulance or emergency medical service organizations or, if the township
is located in a county with a population of forty thousand or less, the
interchange of services from nonemergency patient transport service
organizations, within the several territories of the contracting parties, if
the contract is first authorized by the respective boards of township trustees,
the other legislative bodies, or the officer or body authorized to contract on
behalf of the state agency. Such contracts shall not be entered into with a
state agency or nonprofit corporation that receives more than half of its
operating funds from governmental entities with the intention of directly
competing with the operation of other ambulance, emergency medical, or
nonemergency patient transport service organizations in the township unless the
state agency or nonprofit corporation is awarded the contract after submitting
the lowest and best bid to the board of township trustees.

The contract may
provide for compensation upon such terms as the parties may agree.

Any township wishing to
commence providing or wishing to enter into a contract for the first time to
furnish or obtain services from nonemergency patient transport service
organizations on or after March 1, 1993, including a township in which a
private provider has been providing the service, shall demonstrate the need for
public funding for the service to, and obtain approval from, the state board of
emergency medical, fire, and transportation
services or its immediate successor board prior to the establishment of a
township-operated or township-funded service.

(A)
As used in
this section, "run" includes a call and an emergency to which a contracting
party responds under a contract executed pursuant to section
505.44 of the Revised
Code.

(B)
A township
that enters into a contract with another party for services pursuant to section
505.44 of the Revised Code may
provide in the contract that the contracting party shall collect and retain any
fee that the township may charge for each run involving ambulance service,
emergency medical service, or nonemergency patient transport service. The
contract shall require that once each month, the contracting party shall
provide the township with a written report that shall include for the previous
month the number of runs the contracting party made in the township, the amount
that was billed for each run, and the amount received for each run from the
person that was billed for that particular run. The report also shall include
the total amount collected that calendar year to date and the total amount
outstanding that calendar year to date.

The board of township trustees may send any of the officers and
firemen of its fire department to schools of instruction designed to promote
the efficiency of firemen, and, if authorized in advance, may pay their
necessary expenses from the funds used for the maintenance and operation of
such department.

The board of township trustees may construct, rebuild, and
repair footbridges across rivers and streams when necessary, to provide
convenient means of access to the public schools of the township by pupils
residing in the school district in which a public schoolhouse is located. If a
river or stream coincides with the boundary of two townships, either of the
townships may construct, rebuild, or repair a footbridge across that river or
stream at its own expense and subject to section
505.47 of the Revised Code. In no
case shall the cost of the construction, rebuilding, or repair of any
footbridge exceed the sum of fifteen thousand dollars.

The board of township trustees may pay the cost of the
construction, rebuilding, or repair of footbridges authorized by section
505.46 of the Revised Code out of
any funds, unappropriated for any other purpose, in the township treasury. If
there be no funds in the township treasury available for these purposes, the
board may levy a tax for the purpose of procuring the necessary funds for the
construction, rebuilding, or repair of the footbridges. The tax shall be levied
upon all of the taxable property in the township and shall be certified,
levied, and collected in the manner prescribed for other township taxes. The
money so raised shall be paid over to the township fiscal officer, and the
fiscal officer shall pay it out on the order of the board, certified by the
fiscal officer.

The tax shall not be levied until it has been approved by a
majority of the qualified voters of the township, voting at any election at
which the question shall be submitted. The election shall be called at a
regular meeting of the board and shall be held within thirty days from the date
of the resolution of the board calling for it. Twenty days' notice of the
election shall be given by the posting of notices by the fiscal officer in ten
public places of the township. Provisions for holding the election shall be
made by the board of elections, upon receiving notice from the fiscal officer
of the date and purpose of the election.

(A)
The board of township trustees of any township may, by resolution adopted by
two-thirds of the members of the board, create a township police district
comprised of all or a portion of the unincorporated territory of the township
as the resolution may specify. If the township police district does not include
all of the unincorporated territory of the township, the resolution creating
the district shall contain a complete and accurate description of the territory
of the district and a separate and distinct name for the district.

At any time not less
than one hundred twenty days after a township police district is created and
operative, the territorial limits of the district may be altered in the manner
provided in division (B) of this section or, if applicable, as provided in
section 505.482 of the Revised Code.

(B)
Except
as otherwise provided in section 505.481 of the Revised Code,
the territorial limits of a township police district may be altered by a
resolution adopted by a two-thirds vote of the board of township trustees. If
the township police district imposes a tax, any territory proposed for addition
to the district shall become part of the district only after all of the
following have occurred:

(1)
Adoption
by two-thirds vote of the board of township trustees of a resolution approving
the expansion of the territorial limits of the district;

(2)
Adoption by a two-thirds vote of the board of township trustees of a resolution
recommending the extension of the tax to the additional territory;

(3)
Approval of the tax by the electors of the territory proposed for addition to
the district.

Each resolution of
the board adopted under division (B)(2) of this section shall state the name of
the township police district, a description of the territory to be added, and
the rate and termination date of the tax, which shall be the rate and
termination date of the tax currently in effect in the district.

The board of trustees
shall certify each resolution adopted under division (B)(2) of this section to
the board of elections in accordance with section
5705.19 of the Revised Code. The
election required under division (B)(3) of this section shall be held,
canvassed, and certified in the manner provided for the submission of tax
levies under section
5705.25 of the Revised Code,
except that the question appearing on the ballot shall read:

"Shall the territory
within .......................... (description of the proposed territory to be
added) be added to ................ (name) township police district, and a
property tax at a rate of taxation not exceeding .......... (here insert tax
rate) be in effect for .......... (here insert the number of years the tax is
to be in effect or "a continuing period of time," as applicable)?"

If the question is
approved by at least a majority of the electors voting on it, the joinder shall
be effective as of the first day of January of the year following approval,
and, on that date, the township police district tax shall be extended to the
taxable property within the territory that has been added.

(A)
If a township
police district does not include all the unincorporated territory of the
township, the remaining unincorporated territory of the township may be added
to the district by a resolution adopted by a unanimous vote of the board of
township trustees to place the issue of expansion of the district on the ballot
for the electors of the entire unincorporated territory of the township. The
resolution shall state whether the proposed township police district initially
will hire personnel as provided in section
505.49 of the Revised Code or
contract for the provision of police protection services or additional police
protection services as provided in section
505.43 or
505.50 of the Revised Code.

The ballot measure shall provide for the addition into a new
district of all the unincorporated territory of the township not already
included in the township police district and for the levy of any tax then
imposed by the district throughout the unincorporated territory of the
township. The measure shall state the rate of the tax, if any, to be imposed in
the district resulting from approval of the measure, which need not be the same
rate of any tax imposed by the existing district, and the last year in which
the tax will be levied or that it will be levied for a continuous period of
time.

(B)
The election on
the measure shall be held, canvassed, and certified in the manner provided for
the submission of tax levies under section
5705.25 of the Revised Code,
except that the question appearing on the ballot shall read substantially as
follows:

"Shall the unincorporated territory within ............ (name
of the township) not already included within the ........... (name of township
police district) be added to the township police district to create the
........... (name of new township police district) township police district?"

The name of the proposed township police district shall be
separate and distinct from the name of the existing township police
district.

If a tax is imposed in the existing township police district,
the question shall be modified by adding, at the end of the question, the
following: ", and shall a property tax be levied in the new township police
district, replacing the tax in the existing township police district, at a rate
not exceeding ......... mills per dollar of taxable valuation, which amounts to
......... (rate expressed in dollars and cents per one thousand dollars in
taxable valuation), for ....... (number of years the tax will be levied, or "a
continuing period of time")."

If the measure is not approved by a majority of the electors
voting on it, the township police district shall continue to occupy its
existing territory until altered as provided in this section or section
505.48 of the Revised Code, and any
existing tax imposed under section
505.51 of the Revised Code shall
remain in effect in the existing district at the existing rate and for as long
as provided in the resolution under the authority of which the tax is levied.

(A)
The boards of township trustees of any
two or more contiguous townships, or the boards of township trustees of one or
more contiguous townships and the legislative authorities of one or more
contiguous municipal corporations, whether or not within the same county, by
adoption of a joint resolution by a majority favorable vote of each such board
and of the members of the legislative authority of each such municipal
corporation, may form themselves into a joint police district comprising all or
any part of the townships or municipal corporations as are mutually agreed
upon. The governing body of the joint police district shall be a joint police
district board, which shall include either all of the township trustees of each
township and all of the members of the legislative authority of each municipal
corporation in the district, as agreed to and established in the joint
resolution creating the joint police district; or an odd number of members as
agreed to and established in the joint resolution, as long as the members are
representatives from each board of township trustees of each township and from
the legislative authority of each municipal corporation in the joint police
district.

(B)
The joint police
district board shall organize within thirty days after the favorable vote by
the last board of township trustees or the members of the legislative authority
of the last municipal corporation joining itself into the joint police district
board. The president of the board of township trustees of the most populous
participating township or the legislative authority of the most populous
participating municipal corporation shall give notice of the time and place of
organization to each pending member of the joint police district board o as
established in the joint resolution. Such notice shall be signed and shall be
sent by certified mail to each such pending member of the board at least five
days prior to the organization meeting, which meeting shall be held in one of
the participating townships or municipal corporations. Two-thirds of the joint
police district board members constitutes a quorum. The members of the joint
police district board shall, at the organization meeting, proceed with the
election of a president, a secretary, and a treasurer, and such other officers
as they consider necessary and proper, and shall transact such other business
as properly comes before the board.

(C)
In the formation of a joint police
district, such action may be taken by or on behalf of part of a township, by
excluding that portion of the township lying within a municipal corporation.
The joint police district board may exercise the same powers as are granted to
a board of township trustees in the operation of a township police district
under sections
505.49 to
505.55 of the Revised Code,
including, but not limited to, the power to employ, train, and discipline
personnel, to acquire equipment and buildings, to levy a tax, to issue bonds
and notes, and to dissolve the district.

A township or municipal corporation, or parts thereof, may
join an existing joint police district by the adoption of a resolution by the
township or of an ordinance by the municipal corporation requesting
participation in the district and upon approval of the existing joint police
district board.

The treasurer of the joint police district board, before
entering upon the duties of that office, shall execute a bond payable to the
state, in the amount and with surety to be approved by the joint police
district board, conditioned for the faithful performance of all the official
duties required by the treasurer. The bond shall be deposited with the
president of the joint police district board, and a copy thereof, certified by
the president, shall be filed with the county auditor.

(1)
The township trustees
of a township police district, by a two-thirds
vote of the board, or a joint police district board, by
majority vote of its members, may adopt rules necessary for the operation
of the township or joint police district,
including a determination of the qualifications of the chief of police, patrol
officers, and others to serve as members of the district police
force.

(2)
Except
as otherwise provided in division (E) of this section and subject to division
(D) of this section, the township trustees of a
township police district, by a two-thirds vote of the board
or the joint police district board, by majority vote of
its members, shall appoint a chief of police for the district, determine
the number of patrol officers and other personnel required by the district, and
establish salary schedules and other conditions of employment for the employees
of the township or joint police district. The
chief of police of the district shall serve at the pleasure of the township
trustees or the joint police district board and
shall appoint patrol officers and other personnel that the district may
require, subject to division (D) of this section and to the rules and limits as
to qualifications, salary ranges, and numbers of personnel established by the
board of township trustees or the joint police district
board. The township trustees may include in the township police district
and under the direction and control of the chief of police any constable
appointed pursuant to section
509.01 of the Revised Code, or may
designate the chief of police or any patrol officer appointed by the chief of
police as a constable, as provided for in section
509.01 of the Revised Code, for the
township police district.

(3)
Except as provided in division (D) of this section, a patrol officer, other
police district employee, or police constable, who has been awarded a
certificate attesting to the satisfactory completion of an approved state,
county, or municipal police basic training program, as required by section
109.77 of the Revised Code, may be
removed or suspended only under the conditions and by the procedures in
sections 505.491 to
505.495 of the Revised Code. Any
other patrol officer, police district employee, or police constable shall serve
at the pleasure of the township trustees or joint
police district board. In case of removal or suspension of an appointee
by the board of township trustees of a township police
district or the joint police district board, that appointee may appeal
the decision of either board to the court of common pleas of the
county in which the district is situated to determine the sufficiency of the
cause of removal or suspension. The appointee shall take the appeal within ten
days of written notice to the appointee of the decision of the board.

(1)
Division (B) of this section does not
apply to a township that has a population of ten thousand or more persons
residing within the township and outside of any municipal corporation, that has
its own police department employing ten or more full-time paid employees, and
that has a civil service commission established under division (B) of section
124.40 of the Revised Code. The
township shall comply with the procedures for the employment, promotion, and
discharge of police personnel provided by Chapter 124. of the Revised Code,
except as otherwise provided in divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this
section.

(2)
The
board of township trustees of the township may appoint the chief of police, and
a person so appointed shall be in the unclassified service under section
124.11 of the Revised Code and
shall serve at the pleasure of the board. A person appointed chief of police
under these conditions who is removed by the board or who resigns from the
position shall be entitled to return to the classified service in the township
police department, in the position that person held previous to the person's
appointment as chief of police.

(3)
The appointing authority of an urban township, as defined in section
504.01 of the Revised Code, may
appoint to a vacant position any one of the three highest scorers on the
eligible list for a promotional examination.

(4)
The board of township trustees of a township described
in this division shall determine the number of personnel required and
establish salary schedules and conditions of employment not in conflict with
Chapter 124. of the Revised Code.

(5)
Persons employed as police personnel in a township described in this division
on the date a civil service commission is appointed pursuant to division (B) of
section 124.40 of the Revised Code, without
being required to pass a competitive examination or a police training program,
shall retain their employment and any rank previously granted them by action of
the township trustees or otherwise, but those persons are eligible for
promotion only by compliance with Chapter 124. of the Revised Code.

(6)
This division does not apply to constables appointed pursuant to section
509.01 of the Revised Code. This
division is subject to division (D) of this section.

(1)
The board of township trustees
or a joint police district board shall not
appoint or employ a person as a chief of police, and the chief of police shall
not appoint or employ a person as a patrol officer or other peace officer of a
township police district , township police department, or joint police district on a permanent basis, on a
temporary basis, for a probationary term, or on other than a permanent basis if
the person previously has been convicted of or has pleaded guilty to a
felony.

(a)
The board of township trustees
or joint police district board shall terminate
the appointment or employment of a chief of police, patrol officer, or other
peace officer of a township police district , township police
department, or joint police district who does
either of the following:

(ii)
Pleads
guilty to a misdemeanor pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement as provided in
division (D) of section
2929.43 of the Revised Code in
which the chief of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer of a township
police district , township police department,
or joint police district agrees to surrender the certificate awarded to
that chief of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer under section
109.77 of the Revised
Code.

(b)
The
board shall suspend the appointment or employment of a chief of police, patrol
officer, or other peace officer of a township police district
,
township police department, or joint police
district who is convicted, after trial, of a felony. If
such
chief of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer
files an appeal from that conviction and the conviction is
upheld by the highest court to which the appeal is taken, or, if no timely
appeal is filed, the board shall terminate the appointment or employment of
that chief of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer. If the chief of
police, patrol officer, or other peace officer of a township police district
,
township police department, or joint police
district files an appeal that results in that chief of police's, patrol
officer's, or other peace officer's acquittal of the felony or conviction of a
misdemeanor, or in the dismissal of the felony charge against the chief of
police, patrol officer, or other peace officer, the board shall reinstate that
chief of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer. A chief of police,
patrol officer, or other peace officer who is
reinstated under division (D)(2)(b) of this section shall not receive any back
pay unless the conviction of that chief of police, patrol officer, or other
peace officer of the felony was reversed on appeal, or the felony charge was
dismissed, because the court found insufficient evidence to convict the chief
of police, patrol officer, or other peace officer of the felony.

(3)
Division
(D) of this section does not apply regarding an offense that was committed
prior to January 1, 1997.

(4)
The suspension or termination of the appointment or employment of a chief of
police, patrol officer, or other peace officer under division (D)(2) of this
section shall be in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

(E)
The
board of township trustees or the joint police district
board may enter into a contract under section
505.43 or
505.50 of the Revised Code to
obtain all police protection for the township police district
or joint police district from one or more
municipal corporations, county sheriffs, or other townships. If the board
enters into such a contract, subject to division (D) of this section, it may,
but is not required to, appoint a police chief for the district.

(F)
The members of the police force of a township police district of a township, or of a joint police district board comprised of a
township, that adopts the limited self-government form of township
government shall serve as peace officers for the township territory included in
the district.

(G)
A chief
of police or patrol officer of a township police district,
township police department,
or joint police district may participate, as the
director of an organized crime task force established under section
177.02 of the Revised Code or as a
member of the investigatory staff of that task force, in an investigation of
organized criminal activity in any county or counties in this state under
sections 177.01 to
177.03 of the Revised
Code.

Except as provided in
division (D) of section
505.49 or in division (C) of
section 509.01 of the Revised Code
for a board of township trustees,
and except as provided in division (D) of section
505.49 of the Revised Code for a
joint police district board, if the board has reason to believe that a chief of police,
patrol officer, or other township or joint police
district employee appointed under division (B) of section
505.49 of the Revised Code or a
police constable appointed under division (B) of section
509.01 of the Revised Code has been
guilty, in the performance of the official duty of that chief of police, patrol
officer, other township or joint police district
employee, or police constable, of bribery, misfeasance, malfeasance,
nonfeasance, misconduct in office, neglect of duty, gross immorality, habitual
drunkenness, incompetence, or failure to obey orders given that person by the
proper authority, the board immediately shall file written charges against that
person .
The written charges shall set forth in detail a statement of the alleged
guilt and, at the same time, or as soon thereafter as possible, serve a true
copy of those charges upon the person against whom they are made. The service
may be made on the person or by leaving a copy of the charges at the office or
residence of that person. Return of the service shall be made to the board in
the same manner that is provided for the return of the service of summons in a
civil action.

Charges filed by the
board of township trustees
or joint police district board under section
505.491 of the Revised Code shall
be heard at the next regular meeting thereof, unless the board extends the time
for the hearing, which shall be done only on the application of the accused.
The accused may appear in person and by counsel, examine all witnesses, and
answer all charges against the accused.

Pending any
proceedings under sections
505.491 and
505.492 of the Revised Code, an
accused person may be suspended by the board of township trustees
or joint police district board, but such
suspension shall be for a period not longer than fifteen days, unless the
hearing of such charges is extended upon the application of the accused, in
which event the suspension shall not exceed thirty days.

For the purpose of
investigating charges filed pursuant to section
505.491 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees or joint police district
board may issue subpoenas or compulsory process to compel the attendance
of persons and the production of books and papers before it and provide by
resolution for exercising and enforcing this section.

In all cases in which
the attendance of witnesses may be compelled for an investigation, under
section 505.494 of the Revised Code, any
member of the board of township trustees or of the
joint police district board may administer the requisite oaths. The board
has the same power to compel the giving of testimony by attending witnesses as
is conferred upon courts. In all such cases, witnesses shall be entitled to the
same privileges and immunities as are allowed witnesses in civil cases.
Witnesses shall be paid the fees and mileage provided for under section
1901.26 of the Revised Code, and
the costs of all such proceedings shall be payable from the general fund of the
township or joint police
district.

The board of township
trustees of a township or of a township police
district, or a joint police district board, may
purchase, lease, lease with an option to purchase, or otherwise acquire any
police apparatus, equipment, including a public communications system, or
materials that the township , township police district, or
joint police district requires and may build, purchase, lease, or lease
with an option to purchase any building or buildings and site of the building
or buildings that are necessary for the police operations of the township or
either district.

The boards of
trustees of any two or more contiguous townships, or the boards of
township trustees of one or more contiguous townships and the legislative
authorities of one or more contiguous municipal corporations, by joint
agreement, may unite in the joint purchase,
lease, lease with an option to purchase, maintenance, use, and operation of
police equipment for any other police purpose designated in sections
505.48 to
505.55 of the Revised Code, and to
prorate the expense of that joint action on terms mutually agreed upon by the
trustees in each affected township and the legislative
authorities of each affected municipal corporation.

The board of trustees
of a township or of a township police
district, or a joint police district board, may
enter into a contract with one or more townships, a municipal corporation, a
park district created pursuant to section
511.18 or
1545.01 of the Revised Code, or
the county sheriff upon any terms that are mutually agreed upon for the
provision of police protection services or additional police protection
services either on a regular basis or for additional protection in times of
emergency. The contract shall be agreed to in each instance by the respective
board or boards of township trustees, the board of county commissioners, the
board of park commissioners, the joint police district
board, or the legislative authority of the municipal corporation
involved. The contract may provide for a fixed annual charge to be paid at the
time agreed upon in the contract.

Chapter 2744: of the
Revised Code, insofar as it is applicable to the operation of police
departments, applies to the contracting political subdivisions and police
department members when the members are serving outside their own political
subdivision pursuant to such a contract. Police department members acting
outside the political subdivision in which they are employed may participate in
any pension or indemnity fund established by their employer and are entitled to
all the rights and benefits of Chapter 4123. of the Revised Code, to the same
extent as while performing services within the political
subdivision.

(A)
In the case
of a township police district, the board of trustees of
the
township police district may levy a tax upon all of the taxable property in the
township police district pursuant to sections
5705.19 and
5705.25 of the Revised Code to
defray all or a portion of expenses of the township
police district in providing police protection.

(B)
In the case
of a joint police district, the joint police district board may levy a tax upon
all of the taxable property in the joint police district pursuant to sections
5705.19 and
5705.25 of the Revised Code to
defray all or a portion of expenses of the joint police district in providing
police protection.

(A)
A board of township trustees that operates a township police department
, the
board of township trustees of a township police district, or a joint police district board may, after police
constables, the township police, a law enforcement agency with which the
township contracts for police services, the joint
police district police, and the county sheriff or the sheriff's deputy
have answered a combined total of three false alarms from the same commercial
or residential security alarm system within the township in the same calendar
year, cause the township fiscal officer to mail the manager of the commercial
establishment or the occupant, lessee, agent, or tenant of the residence a bill
for each subsequent false alarm from the same alarm system during that year, to
defray the costs incurred. The bill's amount shall be as follows:

(3)
For all false alarms in that year occurring after the fifth false alarm .....
$150.00.

If payment of the
bill is not received within thirty days, the township fiscal officer
or joint police district treasurer shall send a
notice by certified mail to the manager and to the owner, if different, of the
real estate of which the commercial establishment is a part, or to the
occupant, lessee, agent, or tenant and to the owner, if different, of the real
estate of which the residence is a part, indicating that failure to pay the
bill within thirty days, or to show just cause why the bill should not be paid,
will result in the assessment of a lien upon the real estate in the amount of
the bill. If payment is not received within those thirty days or if just cause
is not shown, the amount of the bill shall be entered upon the tax duplicate,
shall be a lien upon the real estate from the date of the entry, and shall be
collected as other taxes and returned to the township treasury to be earmarked
for use for police services.

The board of township
trustees shall not cause the township fiscal officer,
or the joint police district board shall not cause the joint police district
treasurer, to send a bill pursuant to this division if a bill has already
been sent pursuant to division (B) of this section for the same false
alarm.

(B)
The county sheriff may, after the county sheriff or the sheriff's deputy,
police constables, the township police, the joint
police district police, and a law enforcement agency with which the
township contracts for police services have answered a combined total of three
false alarms from the same commercial or residential security alarm system
within the unincorporated area of the county in the same calendar year, mail
the manager of the commercial establishment or the occupant, lessee, agent, or
tenant of the residence a bill for each subsequent false alarm from the same
alarm system during that year, to defray the costs incurred. The bill's amount
shall be as follows:

(3)
For all false alarms in that year occurring after the fifth false alarm .....
$150.00.

If payment of the
bill is not received within thirty days, the sheriff shall send a notice by
certified mail to the manager and to the owner, if different, of the real
estate of which the commercial establishment is a part, or to the occupant,
lessee, agent, or tenant and to the owner, if different, of the real estate of
which the residence is a part, indicating that failure to pay the bill within
thirty days, or to show just cause why the bill should not be paid, will result
in the assessment of a lien upon the real estate in the amount of the bill. If
payment is not received within those thirty days or if just cause is not shown,
the amount of the bill shall be entered upon the tax duplicate, shall be a lien
upon the real estate from the date of the entry, and shall be collected as
other taxes and returned to the county treasury.

The sheriff shall not
send a bill pursuant to this division if a bill has already been sent pursuant
to division (A) of this section for the same false alarm.

(C)
As used
in this section, "commercial establishment" has the same meaning as in section
505.391 of the Revised
Code.

The board of trustees
of a township police district or a joint police
district board may issue bonds for the purpose of buying police equipment
in the manner provided for in section
133.18 and pursuant to Chapter 133.
of the Revised Code. The proceeds of the bonds issued under this section, other
than any premium and accrued interest which is credited to the sinking fund,
shall be placed in the township treasury or joint
police district board treasury to the credit of a fund to be known as the
"police equipment fund." Money from the police equipment fund shall be paid out
only upon order of the township board of trustees of the township police
district or of the joint police district
board.

The board of trustees
of a township police district or a joint police
district board may issue notes for a period not to exceed three years for
the purpose of buying police equipment or a building or site to house police
equipment. One-third of the purchase price of the equipment, building, or site
shall be paid at the time of purchase, and the remainder of the purchase price
shall be covered by notes maturing in two and three years respectively. Notes
may bear interest not to exceed the rate determined as provided in section
9.95 of the
Revised Code, and shall not be subject to Chapter 133. of the Revised Code.
Such notes shall be offered for sale on the open market or given to a vendor if
no sale is made.

The board of trustees
of the township or the joint police district
board may, upon nomination by the chief of police, send one or more of
the officers, patrol officers, or other employees of the
township police district or the joint police
district to a school of instruction designed to provide additional
training or skills related to the employees work assignment in the district.
The trustees may make advance tuition payments for any employee so nominated
and may defray all or a portion of the employee's expenses while receiving this
instruction.

(A)
The board of township trustees or a joint police
district board, respectively, may establish, by resolution, a parking
enforcement unit within a township police district or
within a joint police district, and provide for the regulation of parking
enforcement officers. The chief of police of the district shall be the
executive head of the parking enforcement unit, shall make all appointments and
removals of parking enforcement officers, subject to any general rules
prescribed by the board of township trustees by resolution
or joint police district board, as appropriate,
and shall prescribe rules for the organization, training, administration,
control, and conduct of the parking enforcement unit. The chief of police may
appoint parking enforcement officers who agree to serve for nominal
compensation, and persons with physical disabilities may receive appointments
as parking enforcement officers.

(B)
The authority of the parking enforcement officers shall be limited to the
enforcement of section
4511.69 of the Revised Code and
any other parking laws specified in the resolution creating the parking
enforcement unit. Parking enforcement officers shall have no other
powers.

(C)
The
training the parking enforcement officers shall receive shall include
instruction in general administrative rules and procedures governing the
parking enforcement unit, the role of the judicial system as it relates to
parking regulation and enforcement, proper techniques and methods relating to
the enforcement of parking laws, human interaction skills, and first
aid.

In the event that
need for a township police district ceases to exist, the township trustees by a
two-thirds vote of the board shall adopt a resolution specifying the date that
the township police district shall cease to exist and provide for the disposal
of all property belonging to the district by public sale. Such sale must be by
public auction and upon notice thereof being published once a week for three
weeks in a newspaper of
general circulation in such township or as provided in section
7.16 of the
Revised Code. The last of such publications shall be
made at least five days before the date of the
sale. Any moneys remaining after the dissolution of the district or received
from the public sale of property shall be paid into the treasury of the
township and may be expended for any public purpose when duly authorized by the
township board of trustees.

(A)
Any township
or municipal corporation may withdraw from a joint police district created
under section
505.482 of the Revised Code by
adopting a resolution or an ordinance, respectively, ordering withdrawal. On or
after the first day of January of the year following the adoption of the
resolution or ordinance of withdrawal, the township or municipal corporation
withdrawing ceases to be a part of the district, and the power of the district
to levy a tax upon the taxable property in the withdrawing township or
municipal corporation terminates, except that the district shall continue to
levy and collect taxes for the payment of indebtedness within the territory of
the district as it was comprised at the time the indebtedness was
incurred.

(B)
Upon the
withdrawal of any township or municipal corporation from a joint police
district, the county auditor shall ascertain, apportion, and order a division
of the funds on hand and moneys and taxes in the process of collection, except
for taxes levied for the payment of indebtedness, credits, and real and
personal property, either in money or in kind, on the basis of the valuation of
the respective tax duplicates of the withdrawing township or municipal
corporation and the remaining territory of the joint police
district.

(C)
When the
number of townships or municipal corporations comprising a joint police
district is reduced to one, the joint police district ceases to exist by
operation of law, and the funds, credits, and property remaining after
apportionments to withdrawing townships or municipal corporations shall be
assumed by the one remaining township or municipal corporation. When a joint
police district ceases to exist and an indebtedness remains unpaid, the board
of county commissioners shall continue to levy and collect taxes for the
payment of that indebtedness within the territory of the joint police district
as it was comprised at the time the indebtedness was incurred.

Subject to the limitation in division (A) of section
5739.08 of the Revised Code, a
board of township trustees may by resolution adopted by a majority of the
members of the board, levy an excise tax on transactions by which lodging by a
hotel is or is to be furnished to transient guests. The board may establish all
regulations necessary to provide for the administration and allocation of the
tax. All funds arising from such an excise tax shall be deposited in the
township treasury and may be expended for any lawful purpose. A board of
township trustees shall not levy the tax authorized by this section in any city
or village.

As used in this section, "hotel" and "transient guests" have
the same meaning as in section
5739.01 of the Revised Code.

A board of township trustees of any township that contains a
local school district in which is located a tax exempt, state-owned lodge, may,
by resolution, use the proceeds of the tax imposed under section
505.56 of the Revised Code for the
benefit of such district if the board determines and states in such resolution
that the existence of such lodge creates a serious financial burden on such
district. Upon adoption of the resolution by a majority of the members of the
board, the board may pay any part of the proceeds of such tax to such district.

The board of township trustees of a township that withdraws
or proposes by resolution to withdraw the unincorporated territory of the
township from a regional transit authority under section
306.55 of the Revised Code may levy
a tax on taxable property in the unincorporated area of the township under
section 5705.72 of the Revised Code to
provide transportation services for the movement of persons within, from, or to
the unincorporated area of the township.

(A)
As
provided in this section and section
505.601 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees of any township may procure and pay all or any part
of the cost of insurance policies that may provide benefits for
hospitalization, surgical care, major medical care, disability, dental care,
eye care, medical care, hearing aids, prescription drugs, or sickness and
accident insurance, or a combination of any of the foregoing types of insurance
for township officers and employees. The board of township trustees of any
township may negotiate and contract for the purchase of a policy of long-term
care insurance for township officers and employees pursuant to section
124.841 of the Revised Code.

If the board procures any
insurance policies under this section, the board shall provide uniform coverage
under these policies for township officers and full-time township employees and
their immediate dependents, and may provide coverage under these policies for
part-time township employees and their immediate dependents, from the funds or
budgets from which the officers or employees are compensated for services, such
policies to be issued by an insurance company duly authorized to do business in
this state.

(B)
The board
may also provide coverage for any or all of the benefits described in division
(A) of this section by entering into a contract for group health care services
with health insuring corporations holding certificates of authority under
Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code for township officers and employees and their
immediate dependents. If the board so contracts, it shall provide uniform
coverage under any such contracts for township officers and full-time township
employees and their immediate dependents, from the funds or budgets from which
the officers or employees are compensated for services, and may provide
coverage under such contracts for part-time township employees and their
immediate dependents, from the funds or budgets from which the officers or
employees are compensated for services, provided that each officer and employee
so covered is permitted to:

(1)
Choose
between a plan offered by an insurance company and a plan offered by a health
insuring corporation, and provided further that the officer or employee pays
any amount by which the cost of the plan chosen exceeds the cost of the plan
offered by the board under this section;

(2)
Change the choice made under this division at a time each year as determined in
advance by the board.

An addition of a class or
change of definition of coverage to the plan offered under this division by the
board may be made at any time that it is determined by the board to be in the
best interest of the township. If the total cost to the township of the revised
plan for any trustee's coverage does not exceed that cost under the plan in
effect during the prior policy year, the revision of the plan does not cause an
increase in that trustee's compensation.

(C)
Any
township officer or employee may refuse to accept any coverage authorized by
this section without affecting the availability of such coverage to other
township officers and employees.

(D)
If
any township officer or employee is denied coverage under a health care plan
procured under this section or if any township officer or employee elects not
to participate in the township's health care plan, the township may reimburse
the officer or employee for each out-of-pocket premium attributable to the
coverage provided for the officer or employee and their
immediate dependents for insurance benefits described in division (A) of
this section that the officer or employee otherwise obtains, but not to exceed
an amount equal to the average premium paid by the township for its officers
and employees under any health care plan it procures under this
section.

(E)
The board
may provide the benefits authorized under this section, without competitive
bidding, by contributing to a health and welfare trust fund administered
through or in conjunction with a collective bargaining representative of the
township employees.

The board may also
provide the benefits described in this section through an individual
self-insurance program or a joint self-insurance program as provided in section
9.833 of the
Revised Code.

(F)
If a board
of township trustees fails to pay one or more premiums for a policy, contract,
or plan of insurance or health care services authorized under this section and
the failure causes a lapse, cancellation, or other termination of coverage
under the policy, contract, or plan, it may reimburse a township officer or
employee for, or pay on behalf of the officer or employee, any expenses
incurred that would have been covered under the policy, contract, or
plan.

If a board of township
trustees does not procure an insurance policy or group health care services as
provided in section
505.60 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees may reimburse any township officer or employee for
each out-of-pocket premium attributable to the coverage provided for that
officer or employee for insurance benefits described in division (A) of section
505.60 of the Revised Code that the
officer or employee otherwise obtains, if all of the following conditions are
met:

(A)
The board of
township trustees adopts a resolution that states that the township has chosen
not to procure a health care plan under section
505.60 of the Revised Code and has
chosen instead to reimburse its officers and employees for each out-of-pocket
premium attributable to the coverage provided for them for insurance benefits
described in division (A) of section
505.60 of the Revised Code that
they otherwise obtain.

(B)
That
resolution provides for a uniform maximum monthly or yearly payment amount for
each officer or employee to cover themselves and their immediate dependents,
beyond which the township will not reimburse the officer or employee.

(C)
That resolution states the specific benefits listed in division (A) of section
505.60 of the Revised Code for
which the township will reimburse all officers and employees of the township.
The township may not reimburse officers and employees for benefits other than
those listed in division (A) of section
505.60 of the Revised
Code.

A board of township trustees may procure and pay all or any
part of the cost of group life insurance to insure the lives of officers and
full-time employees of the township. The amount of group life insurance
coverage provided by the board to insure the lives of officers of the township
shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars per officer.

(A)
In
addition to or in lieu of providing benefits to township officers and employees
under section
505.60,
505.601, or
505.602 of the Revised Code, a
board of township trustees may offer benefits to officers and employees through
a cafeteria plan that meets the requirements of section 125 of the "Internal
Revenue Code of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085,
26 U.S.C.A.
125, as amended, after first adopting a
policy authorizing an officer or employee to receive a cash payment in lieu of
a benefit otherwise offered to township officers or employees under any of
those sections, but only if the cash payment does not exceed twenty-five per
cent of the cost of premiums or payments that otherwise would be paid by the
board for benefits for the officer or employee under an offered policy,
contract, or plan. No cash payment in lieu of a benefit shall be made pursuant
to this section unless the officer or employee signs a statement affirming that
the officer or employee is covered under another health insurance or health
care policy, contract, or plan in the case of a health benefit, or a life
insurance policy in the case of a life insurance benefit, and setting forth the
name of the employer, if any, that sponsors the coverage, the name of the
carrier that provides the coverage, and an identifying number of the applicable
policy, contract, or plan.

(B)
In
addition to providing the benefits to township officers and employees under
section 505.60,
505.601, or
505.602 of the Revised Code, a
board of township trustees may offer a health and wellness benefit program
through which the township provides a benefit or incentive to township
officers, employees, and their immediate dependents to maintain a healthy
lifestyle, including, but not limited to, programs to encourage healthy eating
and nutrition, exercise and physical activity, weight control or the
elimination of obesity, and cessation of smoking or alcohol use.

(C)
The
township fiscal officer may deduct from a township employee's salary or wages
the amount authorized to be paid by the employee for one or more qualified
benefits available under section 125 of the "Internal Revenue Code of 1986,"
26 U.S.C.
125, and under the sections listed in
division (B) of this section, if the employee authorizes in writing that the
township fiscal officer may deduct that amount from the employee's salary or
wages, and the benefit is offered to the employee on a group basis and at least
ten per cent of the township employees voluntarily elect to participate in the
receipt of that benefit. The township fiscal officer may issue warrants for
amounts deducted under this division to pay program administrators or other
insurers for benefits authorized under this section or those sections listed in
division (B) of this section.

A board of township
trustees may purchase a policy or policies of insurance to indemnify township
constables appointed under Chapter 509. of the Revised Code or the chief of
police, patrol officers, and other employees of a township
police district established under sections
505.48 to
505.55 of the Revised Code against
liability arising from the performance of their official duties.

A joint police district board may purchase a policy or
policies of insurance to indemnify the chief of police, patrol officers, and
other employees of a joint police district established under section
505.482 of the Revised Code against
liability arising from the performance of their duties.

A board of township trustees may enter into a contract with,
and may appropriate township general revenue fund moneys for the services of,
an attorney to represent the township, expert witnesses, and other consultants
as the board determines are necessary for any potential or pending annexation
action, including proceedings before a board of county commissioners or any
court. The board also may appropriate general revenue fund moneys for any other
expenses it considers necessary that are related to any potential or pending
annexation actions.

A board of township trustees or a board of fire district
trustees may purchase a policy or policies of insurance insuring each township
or fire district officer and the board's employees and appointees against
liability arising from the performance of their official duties.

(A)
The board of township trustees of any
township may authorize an officer, employee, or appointee of the township to
use a credit card held by the board of township trustees to pay for
work-related expenses. The debt incurred as a result of the use of a credit
card pursuant to this section shall be paid from moneys appropriated by the
board of township trustees for such expenses.

(B)
The officer, employee, or appointee shall
be liable in person and upon any official bond the officer, employee, or
appointee has given to the township for the unauthorized use of a credit card
held by the board of township trustees. The prosecuting attorney of the county
shall recover the amount of any unauthorized expenses incurred by the officer,
employee, or appointee by civil action in any court of appropriate
jurisdiction. This section does not limit any other liability of an officer,
employee, or appointee for unauthorized use of a credit card held by the board
of township trustees.

(C)
An
officer, employee, or appointee who is authorized to use a credit card held by
the board of township trustees and who suspects the loss, theft, or possibility
of unauthorized use of the credit card shall notify the board of township
trustees of the suspected loss, theft, or possible unauthorized use immediately
in writing. The officer, employee, or appointee may be held liable in person
and upon any official bond the officer, employee, or appointee has given to the
township for up to fifty dollars in unauthorized debt incurred before the board
receives such notification.

(D)
Misuse of a credit card held by the board of township trustees by an officer,
employee, or appointee of a township is a violation of section
2913.21 of the Revised Code.

A board of township trustees may remove snow from public school
property, or other public property, at the request of the board of education of
a city, exempted village, local school district, legislative authority, or
governing body. Such board of education, legislative authority, or governing
body may reimburse the township for the cost of labor and materials utilized
for any such maintenance at a fee mutually agreed upon by the board of
education, legislative authority, or governing body and the board of township
trustees.

(A)
If the board of county commissioners of the county in which a township is
located has not established a motor vehicle decal registration program under
section 311.31 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees may establish, by resolution, a voluntary motor
vehicle decal registration program to be controlled and conducted by the chief
law enforcement officer of the township within the unincorporated areas of the
township. The board may establish a fee for participation in the program in an
amount sufficient to cover the cost of administering the program and the cost
of the decals.

(B)
Any
resident of the township may enroll a motor vehicle that
the
resident owns in the program by signing a consent form, displaying the
decal issued under this section, and paying the prescribed fee. The motor
vehicle owner shall remove the decal to withdraw from the program and also
prior to the sale or transfer of ownership of the vehicle. Any law enforcement
officer may conduct, at any place within this state at which the officer would
be permitted to arrest the person operating the vehicle, an investigatory stop
of any motor vehicle displaying a decal issued under this section when the
vehicle is being driven between the hours of one a.m. and five a.m. A law
enforcement officer may conduct an investigatory stop under this division
regardless of whether the officer observes a violation of law involving the
vehicle or whether the officer has probable cause to believe that
any violation of law involving the vehicle has occurred.

(C)
The consent form required under division (B) of this section shall:

(1)
Describe the conditions for participation in the program, including a
description of an investigatory stop and a statement that any law enforcement
officer may conduct, at any place within this state at which the officer would
be permitted to arrest the person operating the vehicle, an investigatory stop
of the motor vehicle when it is being driven between the hours of one a.m. and
five a.m.

(2)
Contain
other information identifying the vehicle and owner as the chief law
enforcement officer of the township considers necessary.

(D)
The state director of public safety, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the
Revised Code, shall adopt rules governing the color, size, and design of decals
issued under this section and the location where the decals shall be displayed
on vehicles that are enrolled in the program.

(E)
Divisions (A) to (D) of this section do not require a law enforcement officer
to conduct an investigatory stop of a vehicle displaying a decal issued under
this section.

(1)
"Investigatory stop" means a temporary stop of a motor vehicle and its operator
and occupants for purposes of determining the identity of the person who is
operating the vehicle and, if the person who is operating it is not its owner,
whether any violation of law has occurred or is occurring. An "investigatory
stop" is not an arrest, but, if an officer who conducts an investigatory stop
determines that illegal conduct has occurred or is occurring,
an "investigatory stop" may be the basis for an arrest.

As used in this section, "rail property" and "rail service"
have the same meanings as in section
4981.01 of the Revised Code.

The board of township trustees may acquire, rehabilitate, and
develop rail property and rail service, and may enter into agreements with the
Ohio rail development commission, boards of county commissioners, legislative
authorities of municipal corporations, other boards of township trustees, with
other governmental agencies or organizations, and with private agencies or
organizations in order to achieve those purposes.

(A)
The
trustees of any township may participate in, give financial assistance to, and
cooperate with other agencies or organizations, either private or governmental,
in establishing and operating any federal program enacted by the congress of
the United States, and for such purpose may adopt any procedures and take any
action not prohibited by the constitution of Ohio and not in conflict with the
laws of this state.

(B)
The
trustees may participate in, give financial assistance to, and cooperate with
public and nonprofit private agencies and organizations in establishing and
operating programs to provide necessary social services to meet the needs of
older persons, in addition to those agencies and organizations receiving
federal funds for this purpose. The trustees may contract with one or more
other townships to form a district, comprised of all the territory of the
contracting townships, for the purpose of jointly financing the building or
renovation of or the operation of a multipurpose senior center as provided for
in sections
173.11 and
173.12 of the Revised Code. For the
purpose of this division, payments to the township under the "State and Local
Fiscal Assistance Act of 1972," 86 Stat. 919, 31 U.S.C. 1221, as amended, shall
be considered to be township general funds. If the trustees find that any
agency or organization receiving funds pursuant to this division uses them for
any purpose not clearly a public purpose authorized by this division and by the
trustees or fails to comply with accounting and reporting requirements under
Chapter 117. of the Revised Code, the trustees shall withhold further payments
of such funds to such agency or organization.

The trustees of a township operating a multipurpose senior
center and the trustees of townships that have contracted to form a district
for the purpose of jointly financing the operation of a multipurpose senior
center may use township general funds to pay for the operating expenses of the
multipurpose senior center which may include, but need not be limited to, the
purchase of food, supplies, and equipment.

The board of trustees of any township, through unanimous vote
of its membership, may designate, participate in, and cooperate with any
community improvement corporation organized under Chapter 1724. of the Revised
Code and may give financial or other assistance, including any fees generated
by the corporation, to that corporation to defray its administrative expenses.
Any moneys contributed by the board for this purpose shall be drawn from the
general fund of the township not otherwise appropriated.

In addition, the board may purchase real property for the
purpose of transferring that property to the community improvement corporation.
In order to finance the purchase of that real property, the board may issue
general obligation bonds of the township in accordance with Chapter 133. of the
Revised Code, for which the full faith and credit of the township shall be
pledged.

A board of township trustees may appropriate township general
revenue fund moneys not appropriated for any other purpose for the purpose of
establishing, promoting, and operating neighborhood crime watch programs in the
township.

If the board finds that any neighborhood crime watch program
receiving funds pursuant to this section uses them for any purpose not clearly
a public purpose authorized by this section and by the board, or that any such
program fails to comply with accounting and reporting requirements under
Chapter 117. of the Revised Code, the board shall withhold further payments of
funds to that program.

A board of township trustees may appropriate township general
revenue fund moneys not appropriated for any other purpose to a county office
of economic development created pursuant to section
307.07 of the Revised Code.

The board of trustees of any township may participate in and
contribute to a nonprofit organization that is incorporated under Chapter 1702.
of the Revised Code, that consists of units of government, and that has as its
purpose regional cooperation and improvement. The board may appropriate
contributions to the organization from the township's general fund. As used in
this section, "organization" does not include any organization created pursuant
to a law or ordinance that expressly names the organization and its purpose.

A board of township trustees may agree to appropriate township
general revenue fund moneys to, and may agree to grant or lend moneys from the
township general revenue fund to, any political subdivision with authority to
provide water, sanitary sewerage, or storm water drainage within the township,
for the purpose of providing moneys to the political subdivision to pay for the
planning of or actual costs, fees, debt retirement, or any other expense,
including, but not limited to, administrative and professional fees, incurred
in supplying one or more of these purposes within the township, or the planning
of or actual construction, maintenance, repair, or operation of water, sanitary
sewerage, or storm water drainage within the township. A board of township
trustees that grants or lends moneys to a political subdivision for this
purpose shall expressly state the terms of the grant or loan agreement in a
written memorandum.

A board of township trustees may appropriate from the township
general revenue fund moneys not appropriated for any other purpose to an
organization that the board determines serves a community purpose and that is
exempt from federal taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in
subsection 501(c)(3) of the "Internal Revenue Code of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085,
26 U.S.C.
1, as amended.

The boards of township trustees of one or more townships and
the legislative authorities of any one or more municipal corporations within or
adjoining those townships, or the boards of township trustees of two or more
townships, or the legislative authorities of two or more municipal
corporations, may, by adoption of a joint resolution by a majority of the
members of each board of township trustees and by a majority of the members of
the legislative authority of each municipal corporation, create a joint
ambulance district comprising the municipal corporations and all or any
portions of the townships as are mutually agreed upon, except that no portion
of a township or municipal corporation being served by a joint emergency
medical services district shall be part of a joint ambulance district. A
district so created shall be given a name different from the name of any
participating township or municipal corporation.

The governing body of a district shall be a board of trustees,
which shall include one representative appointed by each board of township
trustees and one representative appointed by the legislative authority of each
municipal corporation in the district. Members of the board of trustees may be
compensated at a rate not to exceed seventy-five dollars per meeting, not to
exceed fifteen meetings per year, and may be reimbursed for all necessary
expenses incurred. The board shall employ a clerk. Before entering upon
official duties, the clerk shall execute a bond, in the amount and with surety
to be approved by the board, payable to the state, and conditioned for the
faithful performance of all official duties required of the clerk. The bond
shall be deposited with the presiding officer of the board, and copies of it,
certified by the presiding officer, shall be filed with the county auditor of
each county with a subdivision included in the district.

To provide the services and equipment it considers necessary
for the district, the board may levy taxes, subject to Chapter 5705. of the
Revised Code, and issue bonds and other evidences of indebtedness, subject to
Chapter 133. of the Revised Code, after submitting the question of that
issuance to the electors of the district in the manner provided by Chapter 133.
of the Revised Code. The district may purchase, lease, maintain, and use all
materials, equipment, vehicles, buildings, and land necessary to perform its
duties.

Any municipal corporation or township may join an existing
district by the adoption of a resolution requesting membership and upon
approval of the board of the district. Any municipal corporation or township
may withdraw from a district by the adoption of a resolution ordering
withdrawal. On or after the first day of January of the year following the
adoption of the resolution of withdrawal, the municipal corporation or township
withdrawing ceases to be a part of the district and the power of the district
to levy a tax upon taxable property in the withdrawing township or municipal
corporation terminates, except that the district shall continue to levy and
collect taxes for the payment of indebtedness within the territory of the
district as it was comprised at the time the indebtedness was incurred.

Upon the withdrawal of any township or municipal corporation
from a district, the county auditor shall ascertain, apportion, and order a
division of the funds on hand, moneys and taxes in the process of collection,
except for taxes levied for the payment of indebtedness, credits, and real and
personal property, either in money or in kind, on the basis of the valuation of
the respective tax duplicates of the withdrawing municipal corporation or
township and the remaining territory of the district.

When the number of townships and municipal corporations
constituting a district is reduced to one, the district ceases to exist by
operation of law, and the funds, credits, and property remaining after
apportionments to withdrawing municipal corporations or townships, shall be
assumed by the one remaining township or municipal corporation. When a district
ceases to exist and an indebtedness remains unpaid, the board of county
commissioners shall continue to levy and collect taxes for the payment of that
indebtedness within the territory of the district as it was comprised at the
time the indebtedness was incurred.

(A)
The board of trustees of a joint ambulance district shall provide for the
employment of such employees as it considers best, and shall fix their
compensation. Such employees shall continue in office until removed as provided
by sections 733.35 to 733.39 of the Revised Code. To initiate removal
proceedings, and for such purpose, the board shall designate a private citizen
to investigate the conduct and prepare the necessary charges in conformity with
sections 733.35 to 733.39 of the Revised Code. The board may pay reasonable
compensation to such person for the person's services.

In case of the removal
of an employee of the district, an appeal may be had from the decision of the
board to the court of common pleas of the county in which such district, or
part of it, is situated, to determine the sufficiency of the cause of removal.
Such appeal from the findings of the board shall be taken within ten
days.

(B)
As used in
this division, "emergency medical service organization" has the same meaning as
in section 4765.01 of the Revised Code.

(1)
In order to obtain the services of ambulance service organizations, to obtain
additional services from ambulance service organizations in times of emergency,
or to obtain the services of emergency medical service organizations, a
district may enter into a contract, for a period not to exceed three years,
with one or more townships, municipal corporations, joint fire districts,
nonprofit corporations, any other governmental unit that provides ambulance
services or emergency medical services, or with private ambulance owners,
regardless of whether such townships, municipal corporations, joint fire
districts, nonprofit corporations, governmental unit, or private ambulance
owners are located within or without this state, upon such terms as are agreed
to, to furnish or receive services from ambulance or emergency medical service
organizations or the interchange of services from ambulance or emergency
medical service organizations within the several territories of the contracting
subdivisions, if such contract is first authorized by all boards of trustees
and legislative authorities concerned.

The contract may
provide for a fixed annual charge to be paid at the times agreed upon and
stipulated in the contract, or for compensation based upon a stipulated price
for each run, call, or emergency, or the elapsed time of service required in
such run, call, or emergency, or any combination thereof.

(2)
Expenditures of a district for the services of ambulance service organizations
or emergency medical service organizations, whether pursuant to contract or
otherwise, are lawful expenditures, regardless of whether the district or the
party with which it contracts charges additional fees to users of the
services.

(3)
A
district's board of trustees, by adoption of an appropriate resolution, may
choose to have the state board of emergency medical, fire, and transportation services
license any emergency medical service organization the district operates. If a
board adopts such a resolution, Chapter 4766. of the Revised Code, except for
sections 4766.06 and 4766.99 of the Revised Code, applies to the district
emergency medical service organization. All rules adopted under the applicable
sections of that chapter also apply to the organization. A board, by adoption
of an appropriate resolution, may remove the district emergency medical service
organization from the jurisdiction of the state board of
emergency medical, fire, and transportation
services.

(C)
Ambulance services or emergency medical services rendered for a joint ambulance
district under this section and section 505.71 of the Revised Code shall be
deemed services of the district. These sections do not authorize suits against
a district or any township or municipal corporation providing or receiving, or
contracting to provide or receive, such services under these sections for
damages for injury or loss to persons or property or for wrongful death caused
by persons providing such services.

As used in this section, "authorized medicare reimbursement
rate" means such rate established for the locality under Title XVIII of the
"Social Security Act," 49 Stat. 620 (1935),
42 U.S.C.A.
301, as amended.

A board of trustees of a joint ambulance district may establish
reasonable charges for the use of ambulance or emergency medical services. The
board may establish different charges for district residents and nonresidents,
and, in its discretion, may waive all or part of the charge for any district
resident. The charge for nonresidents shall be an amount not less than the
authorized medicare reimbursement rate, except that, if prior to the effective
date of this section, the board had different charges for residents and
nonresidents and the charge for nonresidents was less than the authorized
medicare reimbursement rate, the board may charge nonresidents less than the
authorized medicare reimbursement rate.

Charges collected under this section shall be kept in a
separate fund designated as the ambulance and emergency medical services fund,
and shall be appropriated and administered by the board. The moneys in the fund
shall be used for the payment of the costs of the management, maintenance, and
operation of ambulance and emergency medical services in the district. If
ambulance and emergency medical services are discontinued in the district, any
balance remaining in the fund shall be allocated in amounts proportionate to
the percentage of the district's total population served and paid accordingly
into the general funds of the participating political subdivisions.

(A)
The board of township trustees may, by resolution, adopt by incorporation by
reference, administer, and enforce within the unincorporated area of the
township an existing structures code pertaining to the repair and continued
maintenance of structures and the premises of those structures. For that
purpose, the board shall adopt any model or standard code prepared and
promulgated by this state, any department, board, or agency of this state, or
any public or private organization that publishes a recognized model or
standard code on the subject. The board shall ensure that the code adopted
governs subject matter not addressed by the state residential building code and
that it is fully compatible with the state residential and nonresidential
building codes the board of building standards adopts pursuant to section
3781.10 of the Revised
Code.

(B)
The
board shall assign the duties of administering and enforcing the existing
structures code to a township officer or employee who is trained and qualified
for those duties and shall establish by resolution the minimum qualifications
necessary to perform those duties.

(1)
After the board adopts an existing
structures code, the township fiscal officer shall post a notice that clearly
identifies the code, states the code's purpose, and states that a complete copy
of the code is on file for inspection by the public with the fiscal officer and
in the county law library and that the fiscal officer has copies available for
distribution to the public at cost.

(2)
The township fiscal officer shall post the notice in five conspicuous places in
the township for thirty days before the code becomes effective and shall
publish the notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the township for
three consecutive weeks or as provided in section
7.16 of the
Revised Code. If the adopting township amends or deletes any provision of
the code, the notice shall contain a brief summary of the deletion or
amendment.

(D)
If the agency that originally promulgated or published the existing structures
code amends the code, the board may adopt the amendment or change by
incorporation by reference in the manner provided for the adoption of the
original code.

(1)
A
board of township trustees may adopt local residential building regulations
governing residential buildings as defined in section
3781.06 of the Revised Code. No
regulation shall differ from the state residential building code unless the
regulation addresses subject matter not addressed by the state residential
building code or is adopted pursuant to section
3781.01 of the Revised Code.

(2)
The board may adopt
regulations that are necessary for participation in the national flood
insurance program and that do not conflict with the residential and
nonresidential building codes, governing the prohibition, location, erection,
construction, or floodproofing of new buildings or structures, or substantial
improvements to existing buildings or structures, in unincorporated territory
within flood hazard areas identified under the "Flood Disaster Protection Act
of 1973," 87 Stat. 975, 42
U.S.C.A. 4002, as amended, including, but not
limited to, residential, commercial, or industrial buildings or structures.

(1)
Regulations or amendments may be adopted
under this section only after a public hearing at not fewer than two regular or
special sessions of the board and upon an affirmative vote of all members of
the board. The board shall cause notice of a public hearing to be published in
a newspaper of general circulation in the township once a week for two weeks
immediately preceding a hearing, except that if the board posts the hearing
notice on the board's internet site, the board need publish only one notice of
the hearing in a newspaper of general circulation if that newspaper notice
includes that internet site and a statement that the notice is also posted on
the internet site. Any notice the board publishes or posts shall include the
time, date, and place of the public hearing.

(2)
The proposed regulations shall be made
available to the public at the board office.

(1)
The
board of township trustees may create a building department and employ
personnel it determines necessary to administer and enforce any local
residential building regulations or existing structures code the board adopts
pursuant to this section. The building department may enforce state residential
and nonresidential building codes the board of building standards establishes
pursuant to Chapter 3781. of the Revised Code if the department is certified
pursuant to section
3781.10 of the Revised Code to
enforce those codes. Upon certification of the building department under
section 3781.10 of the Revised Code, the
board of township trustees may direct the building department to exercise
enforcement authority and to accept and approve plans pursuant to sections
3781.03 and
3791.04 of the Revised Code for
the classes of buildings for which the building department and personnel are
certified.

(2)
To administer and
enforce any local residential building regulations, or existing structures code
and the state residential and nonresidential building codes, the board of
township trustees may create, establish, fill, and fix the compensation of the
position of township building inspector to serve as the chief administrative
officer of the township building department . In lieu of creating the position
of township building inspector, the board may assign the duties of the
inspector to an existing township officer who is certified pursuant to division
(E) of section
3781.10 of the Revised Code.

(1)
The board of township trustees may enter
into a contract with any municipal corporation or board of county commissioners
for the municipal corporation or board of county commissioners to administer
and enforce local residential building regulations or existing structures code
in the township or to enforce the state residential and nonresidential building
codes in the township if the building department of the municipal corporation
or county is certified to enforce those codes.

(2)
Any municipal corporation or board of
county commissioners may contract with a board of township trustees to
administer and enforce local building regulations or an existing structures
code in the municipal corporation or county and, if certified, to enforce the
state residential and nonresidential building codes in the municipal
corporation or unincorporated areas of the county.

Local residential building regulations a board of township
trustees adopts under section
505.75 of the Revised Code and an
existing structures code the board adopts pursuant to section
505.73 of the Revised Code shall be
made available to the public at the office of the board, and the section
headings and numbers and a notice of the availability of the regulations shall
be published in at least one newspaper of general townshipwide circulation
within ten days after their adoption or amendment.

(1)
No
person shall erect, construct, alter, repair, or maintain any residential
building, as defined in section
3781.06 of the Revised Code,
within the unincorporated portion of any township in which a building
department has authority to administer and enforce local residential building
regulations or an existing structures code unless that person complies with the
regulations and code.

(2)
No
person shall erect, construct, alter, repair, or maintain any residential
building, as defined in section
3781.06 of the Revised Code,
within the unincorporated portion of any township in which a certified building
department has jurisdiction to enforce the state residential building code
unless that person fully complies with the state residential building code.

(3)
No person shall erect,
construct, alter, repair, or maintain any residential, commercial, or
industrial buildings or structures within the unincorporated area of any
township, if a board of township trustees has enacted building regulations
under section
505.75 of the Revised Code that are
necessary for participation in the national flood insurance program, without
complying with those regulations.

(4)
In addition to any remedies provided by
law, if any building is being erected, constructed, altered, repaired, or
maintained in violation of the building regulations, existing structures code,
or state residential building code in townships in which a certified building
department has jurisdiction, the board , the township building inspector, or
any owner of an adjacent, contiguous, or neighboring property who would be
especially damaged by the violation may institute a suit for injunction,
abatement, or other appropriate action to prevent the violation of the building
regulations or the state residential building code relating to the erection,
construction, alteration, repair, or maintenance of that building.

(B)
Sections
505.75 to 505.77 of the Revised
Code do not confer any power on any board with respect to the location,
erection, construction, reconstruction, change, alteration, maintenance,
removal, use, or enlargement of any buildings or structures of any public
utility or railroad, whether publicly or privately owned, or the use of land by
any public utility or railroad for the operation of its business. Local
building regulations the board adopts and the building code that the building
department administers and enforces do not affect buildings or structures that
exist or on which construction has begun on or before the date on which the
building department begins enforcement of the building code or the date the
board adopts the building regulations.

(C)
No person shall violate any building
regulation the board adopts under division (A) of section
505.75 of the Revised Code. Each
day during which an illegal location, erection, construction, floodproofing,
repair, alteration, or maintenance continues may be considered a separate
offense.

(1)
A
board of township trustees shall not adopt an existing structures code pursuant
to section 505.73 of the Revised Code in any
county in which the board of county commissioners has adopted an existing
structures code pursuant to section
303.37 of the Revised Code.

(2)
If a board of township
trustees adopts an existing structures code and the board of county
commissioners of the county in which the township is located subsequently
adopts an existing structures code, the code the board of township trustees
adopts shall be of no force and effect one year after the effective date of the
code the board of county commissioners adopts or at an earlier date, as
provided by the board of township trustees.

(1)
A
board of trustees shall not adopt local residential building regulations
pursuant to section
505.75 of the Revised Code in any
county in which the board of county commissioners has adopted such regulations
pursuant to section
303.37 of the Revised Code.

(2)
If a board of township
trustees adopts local residential building regulations and the board of county
commissioners subsequently adopts such regulations, the township regulations
shall be of no force and effect one year after the county regulations become
effective or at an earlier date as the board of township trustees provides.

The board of township trustees may acquire, maintain, and
operate equipment and facilities for the collection and disposal of tree
leaves. The cost of providing this service shall be paid from the general fund
of the township, from the waste collection fund of the township created under
section 505.31 of the Revised Code, or from
any fund created pursuant to section
505.29 of the Revised Code into
which moneys arising from tax levies under that section are deposited.

The board of trustees of a township may appropriate moneys from
its general fund to be expended by the township or by joint agreement with one
or more other political subdivisions or by private, nonprofit organizations for
the public purpose of encouraging economic development of the township or area
through promotion of tourism.

Semiannual reports on the use of the expenditures shall be made
to the board of trustees by the chief officer implementing the joint agreement,
or the chief officer or board of directors of the private, nonprofit
organizations.

As used in this section, "promotion of tourism" is the
encouragement through advertising, educational and informational means, and
public relations, both within the state and outside of it, of travel by persons
away from their homes for pleasure, personal reasons, or other purposes, except
to work, to the township, or to the local area.

(A)
If a board of township trustees by a unanimous vote or, in the event of the
unavoidable absence of one trustee, by an affirmative vote of two trustees
adopts a resolution declaring that an emergency exists that threatens life or
property within the unincorporated territory of the township or that such an
emergency is imminent, the board may exercise the powers described in divisions
(A)(1) and (2) and (B) of this section during the emergency for a period of
time not exceeding six months following the adoption of the resolution. The
resolution shall state the specific time period for which the emergency powers
are in effect.

(1)
If an
owner of an undedicated road or stream bank in the unincorporated territory of
the township has not provided for the removal of snow, ice, debris, or other
obstructions from the road or bank, the board may provide for that removal.
Prior to providing for the removal, the board shall give, or make a good faith
attempt to give, oral notice to the owner or owners of the road or bank of the
board's intent to clear the road or bank and to impose a service charge for
doing so. The board shall establish just and equitable service charges for the
removal to be paid, except as provided in division (B) of this section, by the
owners of the road or bank.

The board shall keep
a record of the costs incurred by the township in removing snow, ice, debris,
or other obstructions from the road or bank. The service charges shall be based
on these costs and shall be in an amount sufficient to recover these costs. If
there is more than one owner of the road or bank, the board, except as provided
in division (B) of this section, shall allocate the service charges among the
owners on an equitable basis. The board shall notify, in writing, each owner of
the road or bank of the amount of the service charges and shall certify the
charges to the county auditor. The service charges shall constitute a lien upon
the property. The auditor shall place the service charges on a special
duplicate to be collected as other taxes and returned to the township general
fund.

(2)
The
board may contract for the immediate acquisition, replacement, or repair of
equipment needed for the emergency situation, without following the competitive
bidding requirements of section
5549.21 or any other section of
the Revised Code.

(B)
In lieu of collecting service charges from owners for the removal of snow or
ice from an undedicated road by the board of township trustees as provided in
division (A)(1) of this section, the board may enter into a contract with a
developer whereby the developer agrees to pay the service charges for the snow
and ice removal instead of the owners.

(C)
The removal of snow, ice, debris, or other obstructions from an undedicated
road by a board of township trustees acting pursuant to a resolution adopted
under division (A) of this section does not constitute approval or acceptance
of the undedicated road.

(D)
As used in this section, "undedicated road" means a road that has not been
approved and accepted by the board of county commissioners and is not a part of
the state, county, or township road systems as provided in section
5535.01 of the Revised Code.

(E)
Nothing
in this section shall be construed to waive the requirement under section
1547.82 of the Revised Code
that approval of plans be obtained from the director of natural resources or
the director's representative prior to modifying or causing the modification of
the channel of any watercourse in a wild, scenic, or recreational river area
outside the limits of a municipal corporation.

As used in this section,
"authorized medicare reimbursement rate" means such rate established for the
locality under Title XVIII of the "Social Security Act," 49 Stat. 620 (1935),
42 U.S.C.A.
301, as amended.

A board of township
trustees may establish reasonable charges for the use of fire and rescue
services, ambulance services, or emergency medical services. The board may
establish different charges for township residents and nonresidents, and may,
in its discretion, waive all or part of the charge for any resident. The charge
for ambulance transportation for nonresidents shall be an amount not less than
the authorized medicare reimbursement rate, except that, if prior to September
9, 1988, the board had different charges for residents and nonresidents and the
charge for nonresidents was less than the authorized medicare reimbursement
rate, the board may charge nonresidents less than the authorized medicare
reimbursement rate.

Except as
provided in section
505.441 of the Revised Code,
charges collected under this section shall be kept in a separate fund
designated as "the fire and rescue services, ambulance services, and emergency
medical services fund," and shall be appropriated and administered by the
board. The fund shall be used for the payment of the costs of the management,
maintenance, and operation of fire and rescue services, ambulance services, and
emergency medical services in the township. If the fire and rescue services,
ambulance services, and emergency medical services are discontinued in the
township, any balance remaining in the fund shall be paid into the general fund
of the township.

A board of township trustees may contract with a motor vehicle
salvage dealer, as defined in section
4738.01 of the Revised Code, or a
scrap metal processing facility, as defined in section
4737.05 of the Revised Code, for
the removal or disposal of motor vehicles pursuant to section
505.173 or
505.871 or sections
4513.60 to
4513.64 of the Revised Code, and a
board may contract with a storage facility or other similar facility for the
storage or impoundment of motor vehicles pursuant to section
505.173 or sections
4513.60 to
4513.64 of the Revised Code.

(A)
As used in this
section, "total cost" means any costs incurred due to the use of employees,
materials, or equipment of the township, any costs arising out of contracts for
labor, materials, or equipment, and costs of service of notice or publication
required under this section.

(B)
A
board of township trustees may provide for the removal, repair, or securance of
buildings or other structures in the township that have been declared insecure,
unsafe, or structurally defective by any fire department under contract with
the township or by the county building department or other authority
responsible under Chapter 3781. of the Revised Code for the enforcement of
building regulations or the performance of building inspections in the
township, or buildings or other structures that have been declared unfit for
human habitation by the board of health of the general health district of which
the township is a part.

At least thirty days prior to the removal, repair, or securance
of any insecure, unsafe, or structurally defective building, the board of
township trustees shall give notice by certified mail of its intention with
respect to the removal, repair, or securance to the holders of legal or
equitable liens of record upon the real property on which the building is
located and to owners of record of the property. If the owner's address is
unknown and cannot reasonably be obtained, it is sufficient to publish the
notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the township. The owners
of record of the property or the holders of liens of record upon the property
may enter into an agreement with the board to perform the removal, repair, or
securance of the insecure, unsafe, or structurally defective building. If an
emergency exists, as determined by the board, notice may be given other than by
certified mail and less than thirty days prior to the removal, repair, or
securance.

(C)
A board may
collect the total cost of removing, repairing, or securing buildings or other
structures that have been declared insecure, unsafe, structurally defective, or
unfit for human habitation, or of making emergency corrections of hazardous
conditions, by either of the following methods:

(1)
The board may have the fiscal officer of
the township certify the total costs, together with a proper description of the
lands to the county auditor who shall place the costs upon the tax duplicate.
The costs are a lien upon the lands from and after the date of entry. The costs
shall be collected as other taxes and returned to the township general fund.

(2)
The board may commence a civil
action to recover the total costs from the owner.

(D)
Any board may, whenever a policy or
policies of insurance are in force providing coverage against the peril of fire
on a building or structure and the loss agreed to between the named insured or
insureds and the company or companies is more than five thousand dollars and
equals or exceeds sixty per cent of the aggregate limits of liability on all
fire policies covering the building or structure on the property, accept
security payments and follow the procedures of divisions (C) and (D) of section
3929.86 of the Revised Code.

(A)
A
board of township trustees may provide for the abatement, control, or removal
of vegetation, garbage, refuse, and other debris from land in the township, if
the board determines that the owner's maintenance of that vegetation, garbage,
refuse, or other debris constitutes a nuisance.

(B)
At
least seven days before providing for the abatement, control, or removal of any
vegetation, garbage, refuse, or other debris, the
board of township trustees shall notify the owner of the land and any holders
of liens of record upon the land that:

(1)
The
owner is ordered to abate, control, or remove the vegetation, garbage, refuse,
or other debris, the owner's maintenance of which has been determined by the
board to be a nuisance;

(2)
If
that vegetation, garbage, refuse, or other debris is not abated, controlled, or
removed, or if provision for its abatement, control, or removal is not made,
within seven days, the board shall provide for the abatement, control, or
removal, and any expenses incurred by the board in performing that task shall
be entered upon the tax duplicate and become a lien upon the land from the date
of entry.

The board shall send the
notice to the owner of the land by certified mail if the owner is a resident of
the township or is a nonresident whose address is known, and by certified mail
to lienholders of record; alternatively, if the owner is a resident of the
township or is a nonresident whose address is known, the board may give notice
to the owner by causing any of its agents or employees to post the notice on
the principal structure on the land and to photograph that posted notice with a
camera capable of recording the date of the photograph on it. If the owner's
address is unknown and cannot reasonably be obtained, it is sufficient to
publish the notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the township.

(C)
If a board
of township trustees determines within twelve consecutive months after a prior
nuisance determination that the same owner's maintenance of vegetation,
garbage, refuse, or other debris on the same land in the township constitutes a
nuisance, at least four days before providing for the abatement, control, or
removal of any vegetation, garbage, refuse, or other debris, the board shall
give notice of the subsequent nuisance determination to the owner of the land
and to any holders of liens of record upon the land as follows:

(1)
The board
shall send written notice by first class mail to the owner of the land and to
any lienholders of record. Failure of delivery of the notice shall not
invalidate any action to abate, control, or remove the nuisance. Alternatively,
the board may give notice to the owner by causing any of its agents or
employees to post the notice on the principal structure on the land and to
photograph that posted notice with a camera capable of recording the date of
the photograph on it.

(2)
If the
owner's address is unknown and cannot reasonably be obtained, it is sufficient
to post the notice on the board of township trustee's internet web site for
four consecutive days, or to post the notice in a conspicuous location in the
board's office for four consecutive days if the board does not maintain an
internet web site.

(D)
The
owner of the land or holders of liens of record upon the land may enter into an
agreement with the board of township trustees providing for either party to the
agreement to perform the abatement, control, or removal before the time the
board is required to provide for the abatement, control, or removal under
division (E) of this section.

(E)
If, within seven days after notice is
given under division (B) of this section, or within
four days after notice is given under division (C) of this section, the
owner of the land fails to abate, control, or remove the vegetation, garbage,
refuse, or other debris, or no agreement for its abatement, control, or removal
is entered into under division (D) of this section, the board of township trustees
shall provide for the abatement, control, or removal and may employ the
necessary labor, materials, and equipment to perform the task. All expenses
incurred, when approved by the board, shall be paid out of the township general
fund from moneys not otherwise appropriated, except that if the expenses
incurred exceed five hundred dollars, the board may borrow moneys from a
financial institution to pay for the expenses in whole or in part.

(F)
The board of township trustees shall
make a written report to the county auditor of the board's action under this
section. The board shall include in the report a proper description of the
premises and a statement of all expenses incurred in providing for the
abatement, control, or removal of any vegetation, garbage, refuse, or other
debris as provided in division (E) of this section, including the board's charges for
its services, the costs incurred in providing notice, any fees or interest paid
to borrow moneys, and the amount paid for labor, materials, and equipment. The
expenses incurred, when allowed, shall be entered upon the tax duplicate, are a
lien upon the land from the date of the entry, shall be collected as other
taxes, and shall be returned to the township and placed in the township general
fund.

(A)
A
board of township trustees may provide, by resolution, for the removal of any
vehicle in the unincorporated territory of the township that the board
determines is a junk motor vehicle, as defined in section
505.173 of the Revised
Code.

(B)
If a junk
motor vehicle is located on public property, the board of township trustees may
provide in the resolution for the immediate removal of the vehicle.

(1)
If
a junk motor vehicle is located on private property, the board of township
trustees may provide in the resolution for the removal of the vehicle not
sooner than fourteen days after the board serves written notice of its
intention to remove or cause the removal of the vehicle on the owner of the
land and any holders of liens of record on the land.

(2)
The
notice provided under this division shall generally describe the vehicle to be
removed and indicate all of the following:

(a)
The
board has determined that the vehicle is a junk motor vehicle.

(b)
If
the owner of the land fails to remove the vehicle within fourteen days after
service of the notice, the board may remove or cause the removal of the
vehicle.

(c)
Any expenses
the board incurs in removing or causing the removal of the vehicle may be
entered upon the tax duplicate and become a lien upon the land from the date of
entry.

(3)
The board
shall serve the notice under this division by sending it by certified mail,
return receipt requested, to the owner of the land, if the owner resides in the
unincorporated territory of the township or if the owner resides outside the
unincorporated territory of the township and the owner's address is known or
ascertainable through an exercise of reasonable diligence. The board also shall
send notice in such manner to any holders of liens of record on the land. If a
notice sent by certified mail is refused or unclaimed, or if an owner's address
is unknown and cannot reasonably be ascertained by an exercise of reasonable
diligence, the board shall publish the notice once in a newspaper of general
circulation in the township before the removal of the vehicle, and, if the land
contains any structures, the board also shall post the notice on the principal
structure on the land.

A notice sent by
certified mail shall be deemed to be served for purposes of this section on the
date it was received as indicated by the date on a signed return receipt. A
notice given by publication shall be deemed to be served for purposes of this
section on the date of the newspaper publication.

(D)
The
board of township trustees may cause the removal or may employ the labor,
materials, and equipment necessary to remove a junk motor vehicle under this
section. All expenses incurred in removing or causing the removal of a junk
motor vehicle, when approved by the board, shall be paid out of the township
general fund from moneys not otherwise appropriated, except that if the
expenses exceed five hundred dollars, the board may borrow moneys from a
financial institution to pay the expenses in whole or in part.

(E)
The
board of township trustees may utilize any lawful means to collect the expenses
incurred in removing or causing the removal of a junk motor vehicle under this
section, including any fees or interest paid to borrow moneys under division
(D) of this section. The board may direct the township fiscal officer to
certify the expenses and a description of the land to the county auditor, who
shall place the expenses upon the tax duplicate as a lien upon the land to be
collected as other taxes and returned to the township general fund.

(a)
"Motor vehicle salvage dealer" has the same meaning as
in section 4738.01 of the Revised
Code.

(b)
"Scrap metal processing facility" has the same meaning
as in section 4737.05 of the Revised
Code.

(2)
Notwithstanding section
4513.63 of the Revised Code, if
a junk motor vehicle is removed and disposed of in accordance with this
section, the clerk of courts of the county shall issue a salvage certificate of
title for that junk motor vehicle to a motor vehicle salvage dealer licensed
pursuant to Chapter 4738. of the Revised Code or a scrap metal processing
facility licensed pursuant to sections
4737.05 to
4737.12 of the Revised Code if
all of the following conditions are satisfied:

(a)
The board of township trustees has entered into a
contract with the motor vehicle salvage dealer or scrap metal processing
facility for the disposal or removal of the junk motor vehicle in accordance
with section 505.85 of the Revised
Code.

(b)
The fiscal officer for the board of township trustees
executes in triplicate an affidavit prescribed by the registrar of motor
vehicles describing the junk motor vehicle and the manner of removal or
disposal and certifying that all requirements of this section and the notice
and records search requirements of section
4505.101 of the Revised Code
have been satisfied.

(c)
The board of township trustees retains the original
affidavit for the board's records and furnishes the remaining two copies of the
affidavit to the motor vehicle salvage dealer or scrap metal processing
facility.

(d)
The motor vehicle salvage dealer or scrap metal
processing facility presents one copy of the affidavit to the
clerk.

(3)
The clerk shall issue the salvage certificate of
title, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances, not later than thirty days
after the motor vehicle salvage dealer or scrap metal processing facility
presents the affidavit pursuant to division (F)(2) of this
section.

(G)
Notwithstanding section
4513.65 of the Revised Code, but
subject to division (H)(2) of this section, any collector's vehicle that
meets the definition of a junk motor vehicle is subject to removal under this
section.

(1)
Nothing in this section affects the authority of a board of township trustees
to adopt and enforce resolutions under section
505.173 of the Revised Code to
regulate the storage of junk motor vehicles on private or public property in
the unincorporated territory of the township

.

(2)
A
resolution adopted under this section is subject to the same restrictions
specified in division (A) of section
505.173 of the Revised Code for
resolutions adopted under that section.

(1)
"Facilities" means boat docks and other
boat storage facilities but does not include boat launching ramps or facilities
or any boat docks or other boat storage facilities owned by the state or any
state agency.

(2)
"State agency"
has the same meaning as in section
1.60 of the
Revised Code.

(B)
For
the purpose of maintaining and improving navigable waterways in the township,
the board of township trustees, by resolution, may annually levy a special
assessment upon facilities directly or indirectly benefiting from the
maintenance and improvement of waterways. Assessments shall be levied by one of
the following methods, at the discretion of the board:

(2)
In
proportion to the benefits that may result from maintenance or improvement of
waterways in the township.

In levying an assessment by the method described in division
(B)(2) of this section, the board may consider the number of boats or other
watercraft capable of being docked or stored or otherwise capable of using the
facility upon which the assessment is levied, or any other factor that is
reasonably related to the benefits directly or indirectly derived from
maintenance or improvement of waterways.

Before adopting a resolution under division (B) of this
section, the board shall send written notice to the owner of each facility
stating the estimated assessment for that facility. If the owner objects to the
stated estimated assessment, the owner shall file a written objection with the
board not later than two weeks after the notice was mailed. The board shall
review the written objections and may revise the estimated assessments before
adopting a resolution under division (B) of this section. If the owner of a
facility objects to the final assessment for the facility levied in a
resolution adopted under division (B) of this section, the owner may appeal the
final assessment under Chapter 2506. of the Revised Code.

(C)
The assessment made by the
board pursuant to division (B) of this section shall be at a rate that will
produce, in any year, a total assessment that is not more than the annual cost
of such maintenance or improvement provided that if the board determines that
recovery of the full cost of the maintenance or improvement in one year will
place an undue burden on the owners of the facilities being assessed, the board
may recover the full cost of the maintenance or improvement through assessments
imposed during no more than the ten years immediately following the year of the
first assessment. In no case shall the aggregate total of the assessments
imposed exceed the cost of the maintenance or improvement. In the resolution
imposing the assessment, the board shall apportion the cost among the benefited
facilities as provided in division (B) of this section. The board shall certify
the amounts to be levied upon each facility to the county auditor, who shall
enter the amounts on the tax duplicate for collection by the county treasurer
in equal semiannual installments in the same manner and at the same times as
the collection of taxes on real property. Assessments shall be paid by owners
of the facilities upon which assessments are levied.

(D)
The assessments, when collected, shall be
paid by the county auditor by warrant on the county treasurer into a special
fund in the township treasury created for the purpose of maintaining and
improving waterways. The board may expend moneys from the fund only for the
purposes for which the assessments were levied.

(A)
Whenever a board of township trustees considers it necessary to adopt a curfew
for persons under eighteen years of age in any of the unincorporated areas of
the township, the board may adopt a resolution setting forth the provisions of
the curfew and declaring the necessity for it, together with a statement of the
reasons for the necessity, and providing for its enforcement within the
unincorporated area of the township.

(B)
Any person under eighteen years of age
who violates a curfew adopted under division (A) of this section shall be
charged as being an unruly child and taken before juvenile court as provided in
Chapter 2151. of the Revised Code.

(A)
A board of township trustees may, by
resolution, require the registration of all transient vendors within the
unincorporated territory of the township and may regulate the time, place, and
manner in which these vendors may sell, offer for sale, or solicit orders for
future delivery of goods, or the board may, by resolution, prohibit these
activities within that territory. If the board requires the registration of all
transient vendors, it may establish a reasonable registration fee, not to
exceed one hundred fifty dollars for a registration period, and this
registration shall be valid for a period of at least ninety days after the date
of registration. Any board of township trustees that provides for the
registration and regulation, or prohibition, of transient vendors under this
section shall notify the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the
township is located of its registration and regulatory requirements or
prohibition. No transient vendor shall fail to register or to comply with
regulations or prohibitions established by a board of township trustees under
this division.

This division does not authorize a board of township trustees
to apply a resolution it adopts under this division to any person invited by an
owner or tenant to visit the owner's or tenant's premises to sell, offer for
sale, or solicit orders for future delivery of goods.

(2)
"Transient vendor" means any person who
opens a temporary place of business for the sale of goods or who, on the
streets or while traveling about the township, sells or offers for sale goods,
or solicits orders for future delivery of goods where payment is required prior
to the delivery of the goods, or attempts to arrange an appointment for a
future estimate or sales call. "Transient vendor" does not include any person
who represents any entity exempted from taxation under section
5709.04 of the Revised Code, that
notifies the board of township trustees that its representatives are present in
the township for the purpose of selling or offering for sale goods, or
soliciting orders for future delivery of goods, or attempting to arrange an
appointment for a future estimate or sales call, and does not include a person
licensed under Chapter 4707. of the Revised Code.

(A)
A board of township trustees may adopt a
resolution to regulate in the unincorporated area of the township, by license
or otherwise, the resale, by parties not acting as agents of those issuing
them, of tickets to theatrical or sporting events or to other public
amusements.

(B)
The board of
township trustees may establish a fine of not more than one hundred dollars for
each separate violation of any resolution adopted under division (A) of this
section. Fifty per cent of the moneys arising from the collection of the fine
shall be deposited in the township's general fund. The remaining fifty per cent
of those moneys shall be deposited in the county's general fund.

(C)
Any person allegedly aggrieved by a
violation of a resolution adopted under division (A) of this section may seek
injunctive or other appropriate relief in connection with the act or practice
that violates that resolution.

Whoever violates section
505.106 of the Revised Code shall
be fined not less than twice the value of any property not deposited as
provided by that section, but not more than three thousand dollars, or
imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.